Harry Potter and the Guardians of the Veil
by Haruko-Mizumi
Summary: The W.i.t.c.h. girls have been invited to Hogwarts, and gladly accepted to going. Once there, however, they learn that Voldemort and Phobos have joined forces, and to defeat them, they'll need to ally themselves with their new found friends.
1. New Students?

A/N: I've rewritten this chapter to correct any and all old mistakes and make the writing more interesting. I'm doing this with all the older chapters of this story that I am not satisfied with, and hope maybe everyone will enjoy the story that much more.

Thanks to everyone who has made this story such a success by reading, reviewing, and favoriting! I am so glad for all your inputs and praise, which helped make this story, and my other writing, that much better.

You also may have noticed I chanced this from being the first chapter, to being the prologue, I thought since it's short, and doesn't involve the Guardians or Harry and any of his friends, it would be better off that way.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own W.i.t.c.h. or Harry Potter.

**Prologue**

**New Students?**

An old man with long silver hair, a long silver beard, twinkling blue eyes, and half moon glasses sat at his desk in his office, which was hidden in the Eastern part of the large castle which was Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, looking though his mail, which of course came by owl, and he came upon a very import looking envelope, stamped with the Minister of Magic's seal. He carefully opened it, and unfolded the think parchment to read the letter inside.

"Dear Professor Dumbledore,

The Ministry of Magic has discovered five young adults, young women to be exact, with magical powers, however, these children are in their late teens, and every other school of magic we have notified that is closer to their country of residence, the United States, has rejected them because of their age.

You are the last person we have contacted about them, thus, if you turn them down, they will not be able not learn the art of magic.

Please consider taking them as students.

Signed,

Cornelius Oswald Fudge

Minister of Magic'

Dumbledore thought about the letter, seeing no reason to turn away these young women, regardless of their age, the talent would always be there, and they should gain the knowledge of how to use it. Already making his decision he read the second, smaller letter in the envelope.

'This is information about the young ladies in question.

First, Wilhelmina Vandom age sixteen of Heatherfield, New York, a muggle born with power that little is known about.

Second, Irma Lair age fifteen of Heatherfield, New York, a muggle born with power over the Greek element of water.

Taranee Cook age fifteen of Heatherfield, New York, a muggle born with power over the Greek element of fire.

Cornelia Hale age sixteen of Heatherfield, New York, a muggle born with power over the Greek element of earth.

Hay Lin age fifteen of Heatherfield, New York, a muggle born with power over the Greek element of air.'

'All from the United States, and all with power over the Greek elements. How did muggle borns get such power? I wonder, might they be a hazard?' Dumbledore looked over the letters again, deep in thought, but ultimately still arriving at the same decision he had come upon before.

He put down the letters on his desk, pulled a piece of parchment toward him, picked up his quill, and began to write.

"Dear Minister Fudge,

I will accept these girls as long as you allow me, and not the Ministry, to inform these students of this. I see no reason to deny these girls the knowledge they may need to control their powers, despite their age and any other powers beyond our knowledge.

Singed,

Professor Albus Dumbledore,

Headmaster of Hogwarts,

Order of Merlin, First Class,

Grand Sorc.

Chief Warlock,

Supreme Mugwump,

International Confred. Of Wizards"

The man put down the quill, taking a moment to look over his letter (and his long list of titles) and called in a surprisingly loud and clear voice, "Fawkes! I have a task for you."

A beautiful red and gold bird appeared in a flash of golden flames and landed on the desk, looking dutifully at his master, as if asking what task he was to do.

"Please deliver this to Cornelius Fudge." Dumbledore said, holding out the letter for the beautiful Phoenix, and the bird took the letter in his beak and disappeared in another flash of gold flames.

Dumbledore sat back, and stroked his long beard. "These girls have great powers, there can be no question of that. Seeing as that is, I wonder if Tom knows of them. Anything of this magnitude rarely escapes his attention." He muttered to himself.

* * *

In a dark cave, a tall, thin, man was pacing, this man looked more like a snake than a human, as he had long, boney fingers, large red eyes, and slits for nostrils.

A short balding man ran forward and bowed, obviously nervous and afraid of the tall, thin man.

"This had better be good, Wormtail." The tall man said, coldly, his red eyes drilling into the balding one.

"My lord, we have found three teenage girls with very great powers." The short man replied, never meeting his master's eyes.

"What kind of powers?" The tall man asked sounding slightly interested.

"Power over the Greek elements, sir. Power over water, fire, earth, and air." The short man explained.

"Where do they live?" The tall man asked.

"We're not sure at the time. But your Death Eaters are looking for they as we speak, my lord." The short man answered. "We will find them, I promise."

"When you find them, bring them to me." The tall man ordered.

"Yes, my lord." The short man said, backing away and turning to run once he was ten paces away from his horrible lord.

'With the powers of the Greek elements in my control, I'll be unstoppable.' Voldemort thought, as he smiled a very cold smile. 'These girls will obey me. I will make sure of it, and that damned Harry Potter will not meddle this time, he instead will be destroyed once I get these powers.

**End Chapter One**

A/N: There's the revised chapter one, and I will have chapter two revised and up soon if not right away.

I certainly hope you enjoyed the revised version more, I think it's better myself, but I don't think my opinion matters much when it comes to my work, what matters to me are your opinions, so please give them.


	2. The News

A/N: Here is the revised chapter two, and I have taken out all those annoying review responses.

I hope you enjoy this one more than the original.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter or W.i.t.c.h.

**Chapter Two**

**The News**

Will Vandom hit the snooze on her alarm clock, groaning and rolling over in her bed. 'I can't believe my mom sets that thing in the summer.' She thought, sighing, knowing she would not get back to sleep.

She slowly got up, dressed, brushed her teeth and hair, checked to make sure the Heart was still with here, even though it stayed in her palm, she was afraid someone would find a way to remove it, and went downstairs.

She was greeted by her mother, who said: "Look who's finally up."

"Ha ha." Will said dryly, pulling a bowl a cereal box toward her. "I'm going to the park to meet Irma, Cornelia, Hay Lin, and Taranee after breakfast."

"Okay honey. Oh, this letter came for you." Her mom replied, sliding a letter across the table to her, not looking away from her newspaper.

"This early? Mail never comes this early." Will noted.

Her mother shrugged. "What's really strange is an owl delivered it."

Will started laughing. "You're kidding!"

Her mother glanced at her, a very serious glance, which made Will's laugh fade away in her throat; that look meant she was not kidding.

Now curious, Will picked up the letter to inspect it. Her jaw dropped when she saw the way it was addressed. 'Wilhelmina Vandom, eastern most bedroom, Heatherfield.' She turned the letter over and saw a red wax seal with a lion, an eagle, a badger, and a snake all circling a capital H. She paused, then opened the letter and read:

'Dear Miss Vandom.

I am pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts, School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Please meet me in Oak River Park tomorrow at two o'clock P.M, and I will explain farther.

I do hope you will come and accept the schools invitation.

Yours Sincerely,

Albus Dumbledore

(Headmaster of Hogwarts School, Order of Merlin, first class, Grand Sorc. Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International confed. of wizards.)

Will stared at the letter. 'This as got to be some kind of joke.' She thought. 'Irma loves to play jokes, maybe she sent it, but this sounds more like Hay Lin with the magic thing, so either Irma's gotten very creative or Hay Lin is sneaky all of a sudden, but a school of magic? Even that's beyond either of them, I would think.

Putting down the letter, she looked at her watch. 'I'll ask the guys about it when I get to the park.' She picked up her backpack, bidding goodbye to her mother, left her apartment, and headed to the park.

* * *

When Will got to the park, she saw a dripping wet Cornelia yelling at a giggling Irma, who were being watched by Caleb, who was also dripping wet, Taranee, and Hay Lin.

"What's going on?" Will asked, walking over.

"Irma ambushed Cornelia and Caleb while they having a moment." Hay Lin answered, shooting her friend a disapproving look.

"I told you, we were just talking." Caleb said, coolly, deigning everything that had to do with his feelings for Cornelia, as he always did.

Will rolled her eyes. "We've told her so many times, the girl doesn't learn."

"She might be jealous that she doesn't have a boyfriend." Taranee piped up, and immediately tried to make herself look as small as possible.

"Have you been reading minds again?" Will asked, sighing.

Taranee didn't answer.

Will rolled her eyes again, running a hand through her short flaming hair, wondering what in the world she was going to do with her friends.

"Would you at least dry me off!" Cornelia yelled.

"Fine." Irma sighed, accepting defeat, snapping her fingers and pulling all the water off Cornelia, and letting it drop on the ground.

"Caleb too, if you please." Cornelia snapped.

Irma rolled her eyes, snapped her fingers again, and the water of Caleb simply evaporated into the air.

"Thank you." Cornelia and Caleb said coolly at the same time.

"You're welcome." Irma replied, giving a half grin.

Cornelia and Caleb both frowned at the cheeky brunette.

Will suddenly remembered the letter, and hurriedly pulled it out of her pocket. "Irma, does this look familiar?" Will asked, holding it up for everyone to see.

"Yeah, I got one this morning." Irma said plainly.

"You didn't write it?" Will asked, surprised.

"Nope." Irma replied. "Even I'm not that good. Besides, where would I get owls?"

"I got a letter like that too." Hay Lin spoke up.

"Me too." Cornelia said, forgetting her quarrel with Irma for the moment.

"Me three." Taranee said.

"Okay, so we all got weird letters. Do you think we should come to the park tomorrow and see if this is for real?" Will asked.

"It might be a joke. I don't want to look dumb in front of whatever joker wrote these things. Besides, how could there be a school of magic?" Cornelia said.

"The same way we can have power over the elements." Irma replied, egging Cornelia on again.

Cornelia folded her arms and didn't say anything, obviously disappointing Irma out of another argument.

"So we'll go then?" Will asked, looking around the group.

Everyone nodded in agreement, but Caleb looked cautious.

"I know I can't stop you, but I'm coming along, this could be trouble, and I'm supposed to look after you all whenever I come here, otherwise Queen Elyon will never let me hear the end of it." He said, his respect for his Queen obvious when he spoke her name.

"Fair enough." Will answered. "Now, shall we go to the arcade or the bookstore first?"

* * *

Thousands of miles away, a sixteen-year-old boy named Harry Potter was talking to his two best friends Ron Weasly, and Hermione Granger in the living room of a place called the Burrow.

"Dad says there are some girls from America coming to Hogwarts this year." Ron told his friends, staring intently at the chessboard on which he and Harry were playing a game.

"Do you know anything about them?" Hermione asked, glancing over from where she was sprawled on the floor with a book, petting Crookshanks.

"Well, I know they're sixteen like us." Ron answered, shrugging. "Couldn't get much out of dad, or Percy." Ron spoke his brother's name with obvious dislike.

"Ron, I wish you wouldn't say your brother's name so hatefully." Hermione said, looking back to her book.

"He was a complete fool, and he was horrible to mum and dad." Ron defended himself.

"He apologized, almost a hundred times."

"Don't start fighting again." Harry said plainly, moving one of his pawns carefully across the board. "You want to bother everyone?"

"Oh, come on Harry. The only other people who are here are Ginny and Luna." Ron said, capturing Harry's pawn with a bishop.

Mr. and Mrs. Weasly, Bill, and Charlie were at an Order of the Phoenix meeting, and Fred and George were at their shop late. Needless to say, Percy had never asked to move back home.

Ginny had invited Luna Lovegood over the summer, as Mrs. Weasley had said she could since Ron was inviting Harry and Hermione, and they were upstairs in Ginny's room at the moment (but they were not asleep, judging by the giggling coming from Ginny's room), where Hermione was staying as well.

"You know, you promised your parents you'd study." Hermione reminded Ron.

"Yeah, but they're not gonna be home for a while. Mum and dad said it could be morning before they get back, and who knows how long Fred and George'll stay out." Ron replied, capturing another of Harry's pawns.

Hermione rolled her eyes and went back to her think book, sitting up, and the book title glittered in gold letters in the firelight, "The Tudors of England", and Harry was surprised that she wasn't reading a book from one of the courses they would take that year.

"Hermione, why are you reading-" Harry started.

"I don't always read text books, you know. I have my interests." Hermione answered, putting Crookshanks on her lap.

Ron looked over to see her book. "Well, there was nothing magical about that family, so why bother?"

"I'm just interested." Hermione snapped, glaring at Ron.

Silence fell for the next five minutes, during which time Ron won their game of chess, and Hermione finished her book, and Ron sat back in chair and looked at his watch.

"Blimey, two already?" Ron said, scratching his head. "Well, I'm off to bed, otherwise mum'll throw a fit in I sleep in tomorrow, since she wants me to de-gnome in the morning."

"Yeah." Hermione agreed, closing her book, and picking up Crookshanks. "Goodnight you two." She turned and walked up the stairs, her footsteps fading away, and disappearing after the sound of a door closing.

Harry and Ron walked up the stairs to the top floor where Ron's room was, his room pained as orange as ever, and Hedwig and Pigwideon were sleeping on Ron's dresser, while the players in the Chudley Cannons posters on the walls had fallen asleep on their floating brooms.

Harry and Ron changed into their pajamas, and both settled into their beds, although Harry's was more like a cot than a bed (but still more comfortable than his bed at the Dursleys).

"Night Harry." Ron yawned, rolling over and pulling his quilt over his face.

"Night Ron." Harry replied, rolling over as well, and taking off his glasses, setting them on Ron's table.

**End Chapter Two**

A/N: There's another revised chapter for you. Please let me know what you think.


	3. The Encounter

A/N: Another revised chapter, and this one is probably the most revised.

I changed a lot here, and of course took out those damned review answers.

**Disclaimer: **I do not, and never will, own Harry Potter or W.i.t.c.h.

**Chapter Three**

**The Encounter**

Five teenage girls were tied to tombstones, one had long black hair that was tied into extremely long pigtails, one had glasses and dark skin, another had short brown hair, another had very long blonde hair, and the last one had short red hair. All of them had their eyes closed with a look of despair on their faces.

"I'm coming! Hold on!" Harry yelled, running forward in the dark.

The red haired girl opened her eyes and looked up at him with pained eyes. "No! Stay away! He'll kill you too!"

But Harry didn't stop, he wouldn't leave her, he wouldn't let her die.

"Hello Mr. Potter." A cold voice breathed from the pitch-blackness.

Harry froze as Voldemort stepped into the light. "I'm going to kill your beloved little pixie and her friends. And I'm going to make you watch."

"Don't you dare hurt her!" Harry shouted, anger threatening to get the best of him.

Voldemort smiled coldly, obviously pleased at Harry's fury. "So, the famous Harry Potter has a weakness, and I'm about to eliminate it." He turned to the red haired girl, and pointed his wand at her. "Don't be so angry, you may thank me for getting rid of such a weakness, if you live to.

"NO! LEAVE HER ALONE!" Harry cried, running forward, but he knew he wouldn't get there in time. "DON'T TOUCH HER!"

"Harry, I'm sorry. I didn't want to cause you so much pain; I just wanted to be close to you, it was selfish of me. I should've known." The girl said in a choked voice, closing her eyes, as she knew what was to become of her.

"CRUCIO!" Voldemort yelled, putting his wand right against her chest.

Harry sat bolt-upright cold sweat covering him. Another dream with that her in it, with that red haired girl, he'd been having dreams with her in them all summer, but he had never had a dream where she was in danger, they were usually happy dreams that involved her smiling at him, or laughing, and, once even her kissing him. Who was she? In every dream it seemed she was very important to him, and he very important to her, but he had never met her before.

He wiped sweat off his forehead. Whoever she was, she was beautiful, even more beautiful than Cho Chang, and she was the prettiest girl at Hogwarts. He still thought so even though they had broken up last year.

He looked at his watch. It was four in the morning. He sighed and lay back down, wondering if he'd manage to sleep again. He lay in bed, staring at the orange ceiling of Ron's bedroom, with one question on his mind. 'Who is she?'

* * *

"Whoever this guy is, he has no respect if he keeps a bunch of girls waiting." Cornelia snapped, tapping her foot impatiently on the sidewalk.

Will, Irma, Cornelia, Taranee, and Hay Lin had been waiting at the park for about an hour and half, Caleb standing not too far away, surveying everyone in the park as if they were a threat.

Will had told him before to relax, they were safe here on Earth, but he still acted like Phobos' spies were everywhere, even though he'd been locked up for the last two years, with no way of escape. She wondered if he was this paranoid with Elyon.

"Does that guy look normal to you?" Taranee asked suddenly, pointing to her left.

Everyone turned to see an old mad with long silver hair, a long silver bread, wearing purple robes, a pointed hat, and half moon spectacles staring at them from a short distance away, a pleasant smile on his kind face.

"Do you think he's the guy?" Irma asked in a whisper.

"He looks weird enough." Cornelia replied, also in a whisper.

"There's only one way to find out. Come on." Will said, taking the first steps toward the man, the other following their leader.

"Excuse me sir. Are you Albus Dumbledore?" Will asked the man when they stopped what she hoped was a safe distance away from him if this turned out to be a trick.

"Yes, that would be me. You five girls must be Wilhelmina Vandom, Irma Lair, Taranee Cook, Cornelia Hale, and Hay Lin." The man replied.

Will winced at the sound of her stupid first name, but nodded and pointed out who was who. "Oh, this is Caleb, he's a friend who wanted to join us today."

Dumbledore didn't look concerned, as Will as expected him too. "If he can see me, he must not be of any danger." His smile was so kind, Will liked it, but she was trying to not trust the old man too soon.

"So, where is this school sir?" Hay Lin asked.

"Scotland, in a place that's bewitched so no muggle can find it." Dumbledore answered.

"What's a muggle?" Taranee asked.

"Non-magic people, people with no magical abilities, such as your parents." Dumbledore explained.

"They would probably be offended." Irma stated, grinning.

"Well, then, maybe you better leave out that part when explaining this to them." Dumbledore chuckled.

"How many other students are there?" Taranee asked, sounding unsure of the whole thing.

"There are at least a thousand students, all ranging between eleven and eighteen. The system of what you would call grades in years, eleven year olds being first years, and so on." Dumbledore answered. "And if you do not believe me, Miss Cook, feel free to read my mind."

Taranee looked shocked. "How did you-"

"Do you think I would invite you to my school if I didn't know at least a few things about you." Dumbledore said, still smiling.

"First years are eleven, we're really late starters." Noted Cornelia. "How will we catch up?"

"You will be given private sessions with your teachers aside from your lessons with your classmates. Miss Vandom, and Miss Hale, you will be in the sixth year with children your own age, while Miss Cook, Miss Lair, and Miss Lin will be in fifth year." Dumbledore said.

"So they'll have a whole other year less to catch up on." Cornelia said.

Dumbledore nodded. "Don't worry, the teachers at our school are the best, they will get you caught up in no time."

"Are there supplies we will need? Schools do usually require text books and materials." Hay Lin asked, twirling on of her pigtails around her hand.

"Yes, There are things you'll need for school, and I will send someone to take you to get them next week. He will also see to it that you get the school safely." Dumbledore answered.

"Is there anything else we should know about?" Taranee asked.

"The magical world is not as safe as it used to be. A dark wizard by the name of Voldemort is powerful at the moment, his goal is to control the world and kill all muggles. Hogwarts is the safest place in the magical world, but even then, it is dangerous." Dumbledore explained. "I understand if this makes you decide against attending."

"Oh no, danger is nothing new to us." Irma said.

"Sounds okay to me. What about you guys?" Will asked her friends.

"Aside from the evil guy bent on world domination and killing muggles, it sounds like it will be greatly in our benefit." Taranee replied.

"It sounds fun!" Hay Lin said happily.

"I guess, I'm still skeptical, but I'm willing to chance that this whole is true." Cornelia said slowly, and she folded her arms.

"Caleb?" Will asked, looking at him.

"You should do what you think is best, I'm Queen Elyon's bodyguard, not yours." Caleb replied.

"It's settled then. We're going." Will said, turning to beam at Dumbledore.

Dumbledore smiled. "Very well, term starts on September the second. I will send someone to get you next week. Now if you'll excuse me, I have other matters to attend to." And with that and a final smile, he disappeared.

Everyone stared at the spot where he had been with their mouths open in disbelief.

""We must be going nuts." Cornelia finally said.

* * *

Dumbledore appeared at the Lin house in the living room, where Yan Lin was dusting an old Chinese vase.

"Forgive me for entering this way, Mrs. Lin, I believe I wrote to you on the matter of teaching at my school." Dumbledore said.

Yan Lin turned around; not appearing surprised my Dumbledore's sudden appearance at all. "Yes, you did, and I would be happy to take the job of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher."

"You are aware that your granddaughter will be attending the school this year?" Dumbledore asked.

"Yes, she told me about it. Would I be allowed to bring an assistant? It would be hard for an old woman to get around on her own." Yan Lin asked.

"Of course. Who did you have in mind?" Dumbledore replied.

"A young man by the name of Caleb." Yan Lin said.

**End Chapter Three**

A/N: I have been revising these chapters quickly, although it may be a while before each one goes up, mainly because my internet keeps going out, so I have no way to update or replace chapters.

And yes, I know that Yan Lin is dead in the books, but this is fan fiction, and this story is a combination of both the show and the books.


	4. Setting Off

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter or W.I.T.C.H. Life is cruel sometimes.

**Chapter Four**

**Setting Off**

Will, Irma, Taranee, and Hay Lin were standing outside an old building that Professor Dumbledore had told them to wait outside of in his last letter, waiting for Cornelia.

"What's taking her so long?" Irma said, looking at her watch for the hundredth time. "The letter said we're supposed to leave at two o'clock and it's one forty-five now."

"Chill Irma, she'll be here." Hay Lin replied, from where she was sitting on a large suitcase.

At that moment, a car pulled up and Cornelia got out, looking depressed, but smiled when she came over to her friends as the car drove away.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't find some of my stuff." Cornelia said, although it was an obvious lie judging by her depressed look. The only thing she could've been doing was saying goodbye to Caleb; he would be going back to Meridian now that the Guardians were leaving, and Cornelia knew she wouldn't see him again until next summer.

When a man with flaming red hair, and hideous horn-rimmed glassed suddenly appeared with a pop, all five girls jumped.

"Sorry, didn't mean to startle you." He said. "You must be the new students.

"Yes, I'm Will Vandom sir." Will answered, trying to be as polite as she could.

"Yes, yes, Mr. Fudge said it would be easy you tell you apart." The man said hastily, as though he was in a hurry.

"And you are?" Cornelia asked, obviously disliking this man's lack of manners.

"Oh, sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Percy Weasley, and I will be taking you to Diagon Ally." The man said.

"Did Dumbledore send you?" Will asked.

Percy frowned. "No, I am to take you to Diagon Ally, on orders of the Minister, and then someone will take you to get your school things. Please step inside."

Will, Irma, Cornelia, Hay Lin and Taranee stepped inside the old building, not bothering to ask who this Minister was; they probably would get a good answer from this man.

There was no furniture or anything else in the room, aside from a fireplace with a small fire going in it, which made all five girls wonder the same thing: how on earth were they going to get to England?

Percy pulled a small pouch out of his robes. "Each of you take a hand full of this powder, step up to the fire, as close as you can, drop the powder into the fire, and say Diagon Ally loudly and clearly."

Taranee looked cautiously between Will and the man, but took the first steps forward, something she would have never done a mere two years ago, took the powder, stepped up to the fire, paused, then dropped the handful of powder and proclaimed, "Diagon Alley!" before she was engulfed in green flames and was gone.

"What happened to her?" Will yelled, as the other four girls also started yelling their own questions.

"Ladies, ladies, please, this is Flo powder, it takes the user to the fire place of the spoken location. I assure you, Taranee is fine and in good hands." Percy explained calmly, sounding kind for the first time.

Irma gulped, took hesitant steps forward, took a handful of the powder, went to the fire place, spoke the location and disappeared in the same flash of green flames.

Hay Lin went next, a little less nervous as the others, but she paused before she dropped her handful of powder, and winced as the green flames surrounded her.

Cornelia walked forward, her face set, and did the whole thing the most willing of any of them, but Will could tell she was just as nervous as everyone else when she took a small step back before she vanished.

Finally. Will stepped up, to the fire, dropped the powder in, and said: "Diagon Ally." She felt her feet leave the ground, she suddenly felt like she was spinning, and she shut her eyes against the roar of flames she was tumbling through, and then she landed on something.

"OW! Will, get off!" Someone yelled.

Will looked down at what she was sitting on, and jumped to her feet. "Sorry, guys!"

Will had landed on Cornelia, who was on top of Hay Lin, who was lying on Irma, who was on top of Taranee, all trying to untangle themselves, and all obviously embarrassed and will a little help from Will, the girls managed to stand up, and brushed the soot of themselves.

Percy came through the fireplace, acting as if he traveled this way every day (Will had to remind herself that her very likely did). "Tom!" He called.

An old man that had a toothless grin and a bit of a limp walked into the room. "Ah, hello Mr. Weasly. What can I do for you?"

"These girls are going to start at Hogwarts this year, it's too late to shop now, so they'll need some rooms." Percy replied.

"We're a little crowded, so I'm afraid you ladies will have to share." Tom said to the girls, very politely. "We have one bedroom with two beds available, and another with three."

"I'll share with Irma!" Hay Lin exclaimed, linking arms enthusiastically with her friend, who grinned.

"I'll share with Taranee, and Cornelia." Will said.

"Very well, thank you Tom. Now, it's very late on this side of the world ladies, and I'm sure you're tired, besides you have a very big day ahead of you." Percy said.

"Thank you very much, Mr. Weasley." Will said, giving a polite nod.

"Not at all, I'm just doing my job, Miss Vandom." Percy replied, smiling at her. "And you will be seeing me later this year. Now, I must get back to the Ministry. Goodnight ladies, Tom." With a last polite smile, he turned back to the fireplace, and disappeared in green flames the moment he stepped in the ashes.

"If you'll follow me please, I'll show you to your rooms." Tom said, gesturing towards some stairs.

Irma and Hay Lin bid the others goodnight and slipped into their room, and round of giggles bursting out as soon as the door closed, making Cornelia shake her head.

Tom led the others to a room a few doors down the hall. "If you ladies need anything, please tell any staff member."

"Thank you very much Tom." Cornelia said, smiling at the old man kindly, and all three girls slipped into their room.

They found white nightgowns on their beds, much to their surprise, but quickly changed and slipped into the beds, egger for sleep.

"I wonder what this magical world is like." Will said quietly.

"I'm sure it'll be fine Will, don't worry." Cornelia replied sleepily. "Professor Dumbledore seems to have everything sorted out."

**End Chapter Four**

A/N: I rewrote these all rather close together, so it won't take much time to replace each chapter.

Yes, it's a short chapter, I know. I'm sorry if it's too short.


	5. First Steps

A/N: I just reread my old authors note for this chapter, in which I said I wouldn't pair up Malfoy with anyone and that he was a stupid git.

So much for that huh?

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter or W.i.t.c.h.

**Chapter Five**

**First Steps**

Will woke up the next morning, finding herself alone, Taranee and Cornelia's beds nicely made up and the curtains open, letting in dim sunlight from the cloudy sky outside. Will sighed before she got out of bed, dressed, and went downstairs to the main part of the Leaky Cauldron.

A table in a sunny corner showed the Guardians sitting around it, eating their breakfast and talking idly.

Will walked over and sat down. "Morning guys." She muttered, not entirely awake yet.'

"Morning." Everyone answered in unison.

"What time is it?" Will asked.

"Don't you have your watch?" Irma replied, through a mouthful of her breakfast, what looked like a cinnamon bun, only where there should've been white frosting there was some kind of pink paste.

"I forgot it, I'm not awake yet it you haven't noticed." Will said. "And what is that?"

"A cinnamon bun." Irma answered.

"But what's that pink stuff?"

"I'm not sure, but it's good."

"They don't offer much for breakfast, they are a tavern." Cornelia added, she herself having one of the buns one her plate, only hers had a lavender paste on it. "But these are good."

"You should have one." Hay Lin said, her own plate empty, except for a few crumbs.

"Nah, I don't usually eat sweet stuff for breakfast, it makes me sick." Will replied.

In response, Taranee handed her half of her own bun. "I get sick if I eat too much sweet stuff the morning too, so this way you can at least eat some."

"Thanks, Taranee." Will took a bit out of the bun, which had green colored paste, which she discovered tasted like key lime, and was not as sweet as she expected. "This is good."

"Do you know who's going to take us around to get our supplies?" Hay Lin asked, combing her fingers through one of her long pigtails (they were not as long as they used to be, she had cut her hair at the beginning of the year, so her pigtails were now only to the middle of her back rather than almost to her ankles).

"No, but I'm sure it'll work out." Will said, taking another bite of the bun.

After they finished eating, the girls went to their rooms to get the lists of the school supplies they needed.

Will had just found her list, while Taranee and Cornelia still were looking for theirs among their luggage, when she heard a yelp come from Irma and Hay Lin's room. After exchanging worried looks with Taranee and Cornelia, the girls raced out of their room and down the hallway.

They found Irma and Hay Lin looking nervously up at a giant man wearing a patched up long brown coat, carrying a pink umbrella, and with a mess of long tangled black hair surrounding his face.

"Who are you?" Will asked, trying to sound as demanding and unafraid as possible.

"Rubeus Hagrid, keeper o' the keys and grounds and at Hogwarts, and the care of Magical Creatures Professor. Dumbledore sent me to fetch you girls'." The giant man replied.

"My apologies." Will said quickly. "I'm afraid we're a bit jumpy."

"Don't think noth'n 'bout it. Yer probably just not used ta this stuff yet is all." The man said, smiling through his mess of a beard.

Will raised an eyebrow. 'This guy has a… unique accent.' She thought.

"So, Mr. Hagrid-" Taranee started.

"Just Hagrid. Most everyone calls me that, I don't like to be called Mr. or Professor." Hagrid interpreted. "Now, Will, ya don' mind if I call ya Will do ya? Dumbledore said tha's what ya like to be called."

Will nodded. "Yes, that's right."

"Dumbledore said yu're the leader of this group." Hagrid continued. "Is tha' right?"

"…So to speak." Will answered, after pausing to think.

"In tha' case, he suggested I ask you any questions I migh' have, but I'm not gonna ask any, not my place to ask about this sort o' thing. Now then, shall we be off?"

Will nodded. 'I think, I hope, this is a man we can trust.'

Hagrid lead them down and out of the Leaky Cauldron and behind the building where there was a brick wall. He tapped the bricks in a certain order, and they suddenly moved to open up as a kind of doorway, reveling an alley filled with shops, and crowds of witches and wizards. "Welcome girls, to Diagon Alley."

The girls could only stand there with their mouths open, taking in what they could only guess was the beginning of what the magical world had to offer them.

Hagrid beamed at their expressions. "Now then, to Gringott's back. I'd advise ya to stay close to me, all righ'?"

* * *

After to the most exciting trip to a bank the girls had ever been on, the girls started their shopping.

They decided their first stop should be Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions, as there were lacking in magical world attire.

The girls took turns being fitted, while Hagrid went about business around the Alley.

Half an hour later, Cornelia was sitting in the waiting room by herself (Irma was being fitted, and the other girls were outside asking Hagrid questions), when a pale blonde boy walked into the shop and sat down right next to Cornelia.

"Hello there." The boy said, in a cold voice that gave Cornelia goose bumps. "Who are you?"

"Cornelia Hale." Cornelia answered, trying to sound nice ever though she didn't like this boy already. "What's you name?"

"Malfoy. Draco Malfoy. Maybe you've heard of me. I'm the seeker on the Slytherin Quidditch team." The boy said. "I'm wondering how a girl like you could have gone unnoticed by me at school."

"Sorry no. I'm new at Hogwarts this year." Cornelia replied stiffly. 'What the hell are Quidditch and Slytherin?' She thought, grumpy at her lack of knowledge.

"You look sixteen. Why haven't you come to Hogwarts before? Do you have problems or something?" Malfoy asked.

"No, I'm from America, so I guess people just didn't know about me." Cornelia snapped. She did not like him at all.

"America huh? Interesting. Tell me, Hale, what blood status are you?" Malfoy asked.

"That is none of your business." Cornelia spat, although she truly didn't know the answer, and she did not like being called 'Hale'.

"Well then, what house do you think you'll be in? For the way you're acting, I'd say you're a Gryffindor."

Cornelia remained silent.

Malfoy was just about to say more, when Irma came into the room holding her school robes. "I was the last one, so let's go."

"Gladly." Cornelia said.

They went outside, joined Hagrid and the others, and went on their way.

"What's wrong, Cornelia?" Hay Lin asked. "You look mad."

Cornelia told them all about the boy. "He was the stupidest boy I've ever met."

"The Malfoy's are gits. That's what got old Malfoy senior locked up in prison." Hagrid said.

"His dad's in prison?" Hay Lin asked, sounding sympathetic. "Maybe that's why he was so mad."

"Nah. He's like dat all the time. Can't do noth'n 'bout it." Hagrid replied casually. "Well here's Ollivander's, go get yer wands."

"Wands? We have power over the elements, we're not magicians." Will said.

"I think ya'd be surprised at what ya can do." Hagrid replied with a smile. "I'll wait out here, ya go on in."

As told, Will, Irma, Taranee, Cornelia, and Hay Lin entered the shop, all of them nervous.

"Good afternoon." A soft voice, almost inaudible, voice said.

All five girls jumped, and Will had to stop herself from calling the Heart out.

An old man came from around a tall shelf. He was pale, thin, and had wide shinning eyes. "Dumbledore told me you girls would be visiting me soon. I will get each of you a wand. Miss Lin, would you mind stepping forward?"

"How do you know our names?" Hay Lin asked.

Ollivander smiled. "Dumbledore has told me much about you."

Hay Lin took a hesitant step forward.

"Which is your wand hand?" Mr. Ollivander asked, putting out a tape measure.

"I'm right handed, if that's what you mean." Hay Lin answered, holding out her right arm.

Mr. Ollivander measured Hay Lin's arm, then he went behind his desk, and came back with an arm full of wands. He handed one to Hay Lin. "Try this one."

Hay Lin waved it, and jumped in surprise when white and blue sparks shot out the end.

"One your first try? That is a little unusual. That is Dragon heartstring, yew, eight inches, very good for defense spells." Mr. Ollivander said, smiling warmly. "Now miss Hale if you please."

Cornelia stepped forward, and Mr. Ollivander measured her right arm. Cornelia went through six wands (at which the girls saw what Mr. Ollivander meant by Hay Lin's first try being unusual) before two doves flew out the seventh one.

"Unicorn hair, rosewood, nine inches. A very good wand indeed, more feminine than most." Mr. Ollivander said. "Miss Cook now, please."

Taranee walked forward, Mr. Ollivander measured her left arm, and after ten tries, music started playing when she waved one.

"Dragon heartstring, ebony, eleven inches. Very good for charms. Miss Lair next please." Mr. Ollivander said.

Irma stepped up, Mr. Ollivander measured her right arm, and on her third try, water spouted out of her wand, making her almost laugh at the fact that water was her element.

"Unicorn hair, maple, ten inches. A good wand for most anything." Mr. Ollivander said. "And now Miss Vandom."

Will gulped, and stepped forward, Mr. Ollivander measured her right arm. After sixteen tries (during which she wondered if Dumbledore had made a mistake in her), a lightning bolt shot out of her wand.

"Phoenix feather, oak, thirteen inches. A very powerful wand." Mr. Ollivander said. "But then again, the most unusual wands chose you."

"Chose us?" Cornelia said, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes indeed. The wand chooses the wizard, or witch in this case. Not to say that these wands are anything extremely unordinary, but these five are very old, I haven't been able to sell them in nearly forty years, since they were first made." Mr. Ollivander smiled warmly at them one last time. "Now, good day."

The girls left the shop, examining their wands.

"That was strange." Hay Lin remarked, staring at her wand's smooth texture.

"No kidding." Irma replied.

They found Hagrid talking to two boys and a girl their age. One of the boys had red hair, brown eyes, and freckles; the other had jet-black hair, green eyes, and glasses. The girl had long bushy brown hair, and brown eyes.

"Hello girls. This is Hermione Granger, Ron Weasly, and Harry Potter." Hagrid greeted when they had made their way over to him.

"Hello." The girls said.

"Harry, Ron, Hermione, this is Hay Lin, Cornelia Hale, Taranee Cook, Irma Lair, and Will Vandom." Hagrid continued.

Harry looked from girl to girl, hoping his surprise didn't show. 'They're the girls from the dreams I've been having! And Will's the girl who always seems important to me!' Harry thought, looking Will right in the eyes.

Will looked right back, and both were unaware of the others greeting and making small talk with one another.

They both looked away when they felt as though they'd received an electric shock, but why, neither one knew.

"So girls. Wanna get some pets ta take ta school with ya?" Hagrid asked.

The girls nodded, said goodbye to the first fellow Hogwarts students they had met, and left with Hagrid.

"See you at Hogwarts!" Hermione called, smiling. "They were quite nice don't you think?"

Will looked back, and saw Harry watching her, although she couldn't read his expression, and he didn't even look away when she met his gaze, although they both did when they felt that shock again.

Upon entering the pet store, Will forgot all about it, and occupied herself with picking a animal companion to bring to school.

Cornelia and Irma picked cats; Cornelia a hazel colored female, which she named Elyon (after whom was obvious), and Irma; a brown and white male, which she named Eddie.

Taranee and Hay Lin picked owls; Taranee picked a male barn owl, which she named Merlin, and Hay Lin picked and female snowy owl, which she named Starlight.

Will picked a frog, because of her life long desire to have one, and named it Klaus.

The girls headed back to the Leaky Caldron, after bidding Hagrid farewell, with their bags and their pets in their arms.

Will's mind again turned to that boy, Harry Potter. Why did he seem so familiar, even when she'd never seen him?

**End Chapter Five**

A/N: I'm currently wearing a sweater and gloves as I type this; it's too cold in my house right now.

I almost miss the hot summer.


	6. Old and New Friends

A/N: It's sad, but I'm only now realizing how much of a literary noob I was when I started this story. Thank god for self-improvement.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter or W.I.T.C.H. I am just a huge fan of both trying to become a great writer like my idol, J.K. Rowling.

**Chapter Six**

**Old and New Friends**

"And just how are we supposed to get through a rock hard wall?" Cornelia asked, tapping her foot on the concrete of the floor of Kings Cross train station.

"If platform 9 3/4 was real, it'd be here." Irma said, pointing to the wall. "I knew this whole thing was a scam."

"It's a pretty elaborate scam then. I mean, what about Percy, Hagrid, and Dumbledore? They were pretty real." Hay Lin replied.

Will took her letter from Hogwarts out of her pocket to see if they'd made a mistake. 'The train will leave from platform 9 3/4 at 11:00 on the morning of September the first.' She read. "I don't get what we're supposed to do." She said.

"What are you looking at?" Hay Lin asked a man who was staring at Starlight, her owl.

All five girls had been getting strange looks from passers-by because of their animals; Irma, Hay Lin, or Cornelia would say something if a person stared for two minutes or longer.

"All right you lot, platform 9 3/4 over here. Ron, can't you get that owl under control?" A woman's voice asked from somewhere behind the girls.

"I can't, mum. Once Pig gets excited, there's no way to shut him up." Another voice, the girls recognized as Ron Weasly's, said.

Will and the others turned their heads toward the voices.

A red haired woman, a young woman with short blue hair, and a young man with flecks of gray in his brown hair were walking toward them. They were followed by five teenagers. Will recognized three of them as Harry, Ron, and Hermione; the other two girls looked about fifteen; one girl had shoulder long red hair, and the other girl had dirty blonde hair that fell to her waist.

"Oh, hello there. Are you Hogwarts students?" The red haired girl asked Will and the other girls.

"Yep." Hay Lin answered.

"Well, you won't get onto the platform by standing around." The blue haired girl said, winking at them.

"They're muggle born, Tonks." Ron said. "They're new, they probably don't know how it works."

"Didn't anyone at the Ministry tell you about them?" Asked the red haired woman. "Arthur told me weeks ago."

"I'm an Auror, Molly. This isn't what my area of work is." The girl called Tonks replied.

Will felt a little uncomfortable; she didn't know these people, and she didn't know what they were talking about. She looked over at Irma and saw that she looked just as uncomfortable as Will felt. "Do you know how to get onto the platform?" Will asked.

"Oh yes dear." The red haired called Molly said.

Will liked this woman right away. She seemed very nice, definitely a motherly person, and she was sure she was the Ron and the red haired girl's mother anyway.

"Just walk straight at the wall between platforms nine and ten. You should do at a bit of a run if you're nervous." Molly continued, smiling brightly at them.

Will thought she must have been joking, or maybe she was nuts, or maybe both. Her like for this woman faded a little.

Will glanced over at the others and mouthed: 'someone's got a screw lose.'

Cornelia and Irma nodded, and Taranee and Hay Lin just stared at Molly.

The tired looking man smiled at them. "Don't worry. I promise it's safe."

Will looked at the man. 'Why do I believe him? What's with the people in this world, you can tell who's a friend and who's not right away.'

"We better get going, Molly, Remus. Seeya next at Christmas you lot." The girl called Tonks said. "Take care. And Ginny, Luna, good luck on those O.W.L's."

The woman, Molly, hugged Harry, Ron, Hermione, the red haired and blonde girls. "Be very careful. Ron, if I get one letter that you've been misbehaving, you're coming right home."

"Mum, I'm a prefect. They won't let me get away with anything anymore." Ron said, dully.

"Hermione, make sure Ron doesn't do anything stupid." Mrs. Weasly continued.

"I'm not going to do anything-" Ron started.

"Sure thing, Mrs. Weasly." Hermione interrupted.

"Ginny, be a good girl, and good luck on your O.W.L's., I know you'll do well." Molly went on.

"Sure, mum." The red haired girl replied, not sounding that sure of it.

"Luna, good luck on your O.W.L's too. We'll invite you over for Christmas, all right?" Mrs. Weasly said.

"Thank you, Mrs. Weasly." Said the blonde girl.

"And Harry, be very careful, and don't go looking for trouble." Mrs. Weasly told Harry.

"Yes, Mrs. Weasly." Harry sighed. He had given up trying to tell people trouble found _him_.

"All right then, goodbye. See you at Christmas, and have a good year at Hogwarts." The man called Remus said.

Tonks, Mrs. Weasly, and Remus walked away into the crowd, Mrs. Wealey waving back at the group.

"No offense, but is your mom nuts or something?" Irma asked Ron and Ginny.

"No. That's really how you get on the platform." Ron replied.

"We better got on the platform, the train leaves in twenty minutes." Hermione said. "Ginny, Luna, why don't you go first?"

Ginny and Luna nodded. Both girls walked at the wall and… disappeared.

Will looked around with her mouth open. "Where did they go?"

"Onto the platform." Harry replied. "Why don't two of your mates go now?"

"Sure." Will said. "Irma, Hay Lin, would you-"

"Okay boss." Irma said, saluting Will.

Irma and Hay Lin walked toward the wall, and went through it, trolleys and all.

"Ron, we'll go through next." Hermione said, in a bit of a bossy voice.

Ron frowned, but didn't say anything as Hermione took his arm and crossed through with him.

"Okay, come one Taranee." Cornelia said.

"Are you sure? I mean, it's a solid brick wall, and I don't think-" Taranee started.

"The others got through fine, and so will you." Cornelia interrupted, giving Taranee a small push toward the wall.

Taranee went through without another word.

"Seeya on the other side." Cornelia said, walking toward the wall, and slipping through it.

"Well, we better go too." Harry said.

"Yeah." Will agreed.

"Better go together, the train leaves soon."

Will looked at the wall. It was just big enough for two skinny teens, like herself and Harry, to go through. "Okay."

Will and Harry walked toward the wall, their trolley's rattling in front of them.

Will felt something brush her shoulder, looked to her right, and blushed when she saw that it was Harry's shoulder brushing hers.

Harry blushed too. And the all too familiar feeling of butterflies in his stomach came out of nowhere. He could only remember feeling it around Cho Chang, but he didn't like her like that anymore.

Will also felt like she had butterflies in her stomach. She hadn't felt it since she'd had a crush on Matt Olsen, but she had broken up with him last May, and she didn't feel that way about him anymore.

They walked through the wall onto a train platform.

Will had never seen a train platform like this. They were hundreds of children, about Will's age or younger, climbing onto the scarlet red train, saying goodbye to their parents, sticking their heads of the train window, or talking to their friends.

"Hey, Harry!" A black boy called.

"Hello, Dean!" Harry called back.

"Hiya, Harry!" A brown haired boy called from a train window.

"Hi, Neville!" Harry shouted, waving. "You haven't lost Trevor have you?"

"Very funny." The boy called back, sticking his tongue out at Harry, at which Harry chuckled.

"Umm… hello Harry." Said a quiet voice.

Harry and Will turn to see a pretty oriental girl with long black hair and a very delicate, very feminine face.

"How was your summer?" She asked awkwardly.

"Fine. How was yours?" Harry asked, just as awkwardly.

"Better then the last." The girl replied, forcing a smile. "Who's this, a friend?"

"Oh, I'm Will Vandom." Will said. "And I dunno about friend, more like acquiesce."

"I'm Cho Chang." The girl said. "I've never seen you around before."

"Yeah, well, I'm actually new this year." Will answered.

"Hey, Cho!" A girl, just as delicate looking as Cho, was waving at her from the train. "Hurry up or you'll lose your seat!"

"Oh. Well, I better be going… See you." The girl said, walking off glancing backwards a last time.

"So, um, was she a friend of yours Harry?" Will asked.

Harry opened his mouth to answer, when someone shouting Will's name stopped him.

Irma and Hay Lin were standing on the steps to a train car, waving her over.

"Come on, let's go find seats!" Irma called. "Cornelia and Taranee already went ahead!"

Will turned back to Harry. "I'm going to go with my friends, so I'll see you."

"Oh, okay, see you later then." Harry said, walking off, probably to find his own friends.

Will left her luggage by the baggage car to get loaded onboard, deciding to keep Klaus with her when she saw how cramped the car was, and followed the others onto the train.

They carried the cages with their animals in them along the corridor (all deciding against putting them in the baggage car), looking for seats. They passed a compartment where Ginny and Luna were talking, and it was only the two of them in the compartment, and Will had the feeling it could have something to do with the fact that Luna was wearing a necklace made out of bottle caps and radish earrings, as well as passing a compartment where Harry, Ron, Hermione, and two other boys and an older girl were sitting with them.

The girls finally found a compartment where only one girl was sitting by the window, and since each compartment sat about six, they figured they could probably join her, if that was all right with her. It seemed strange the girl was alone though, but they couldn't see her face, just long straw colored rope braids.

It wasn't until after they opened the compartment door, and the girl whirled to look at them did they realize who she was.

"Elyon!" Cornelia was the first to say her friend's name, rushing into the compartment, and catching Elyon, who was now on her feet, in a hug. "How come you're here? I didn't know you would be here."

Elyon was all smiles, seeing as she only got to see Cornelia once a month if she was lucky, as her duties prevented her from visiting, and Cornelia had her own duties to take care of.

"I can't believe you're here!" Cornelia exclaimed, pulling back and surveying her friend.

"I got a letter in July, it was the strangest thing! I wouldn't have believed it if the letter hadn't been brought by a Phoenix!" Elyon replied. "But I'm surprised to see you here too."

"A Phoenix!" Hay Lin cried, fascinated by the idea. "Why couldn't our letters have been brought by Phoenixes?"

"It probably would've looked suspicious." Taranee commented, ever the logical one.

"And owls in broad daylight isn't?" Hay Lin replied.

"Oh, it's so good to see you all!" Elyon said, moving to hug her other friends.

"It really is, you majesty." Irma said, giving a joking bowing.

All the girls laughed, but Elyon stopped laughing quickly.

"Just promise you won't call me that at school. I don't want anyone to know I'm a queen." Elyon said. "It probably wouldn't be the greatest idea."

All six girls sat down; eager to share everything they wanted to tell each other.

"How's Phobos management?" Hay Lin asked, after the more pleasant subjects had been discussed.

"He's still in prison, along with snake man." Elyon answered. "Doesn't mean he doesn't try and make trouble though."

All six girls giggled at 'Snake Man.'

"He has followers, but we've found most of them." Elyon continued. "It's still a problem, he seems to have even taught his followers dark magic, and they know how to conceal themselves."

"How's the whole queen thing going?" Irma asked.

"The people say I'm a good ruler, but it's hard. I left Vathek in charge while I'm gone, he protested greatly, but I won out in the end, most of my counsel thought this was a good idea." Elyon replied. "So what's the deal with you and Caleb, Cornelia? He won't tell me anything." She was smirking now.

Cornelia blushed. "You know they answer to that Elyon."

Elyon giggled. "I thought that would be the case."

The conversation continued, pausing when the witch with the food trolley arrived, and the girls marveled at the items on the trolley, all buying at least one of each item.

"These Pumpkin Pasties are really good." Irma said, examining the bitten into item.

Will was looking over the Chocolate Frog she had bought. "I sure hope these aren't real frogs." She turned the box over, and her eyes widened. "What the-"

"What is it?" Cornelia asked, from her spot sitting next to Elyon, her cat on her lap.

Will passed the box to her, and she quietly passed the box around to the others.

"Why is Harry on a Famous Witches and Wizards card? That'd mean he's famous right?" Hay Lin remarked when she got her turn to look at the box.

"One would assume so." Taranee replied. "I mean, mine has Morgan Lee Fay on it, she's definitely famous."

"I have Dumbledore!" Cornelia exclaimed. "He certainly seemed famous, but all this stuff he's done; defeating dark wizards, being on all these important councils."

"What does it say on Harry's?" Irma asked.

Will, who had the box back, read the card. "It only says 'The Boy Who Lived'."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Irma snapped, grabbing the box to look at it. "Maybe someone should go ask him, I mean, we should know about these things if we're going to be living here."

"That's a good idea, but it seems rude." Elyon stated.

"I wanted to go talk to him anyway." Will said, making a decision that she had been toying with, standing, and walking into the corridor. "If I find out anything, I'll let you know."

She walked to the compartment where she had seen Harry before, and was surprised to find him alone. She knocked quietly on the door, and Harry looked up at her.

"Uh, yeah?"

Will stepped inside. "Do you mind if I sit here? I'm afraid I couldn't fit in the compartment with my friends."

"Oh, sure."

Will took a seat across from Harry. "Where are Ron and Hermione?"

"They're talking to the head boy and girl. They're prefects, so they have to be informed of any changes to school rules ahead of time." Harry answered.

"Remind me to stay on their good side then." Will said.

"I don't think you have to worry about that, they're very nice. Besides, Ron doesn't like his job much, but Hermione takes it very seriously." Harry explained, looking back out the window at the passing country.

They both fell silent for a while, Will trying to think of more questions to ask aside from the one she wanted to ask.

"Ummm… what time does the train get to Hogwarts?" Will asked.

"After dark." Harry replied.

Will looked at her watch and groaned; it was only 1:30. She'd only meant it as a way to dodge being rude.

"Don't worry, I have loads of stuff we can do. Wanna play Exploding Snap?" Harry said.

"What's that?" Will asked curiously.

"I'll teach you how to play, it's easy."

Will had a very good time playing different games of cards, some magical world games she'd never heard of before, but with the risk of all the cards exploding in one big bang.

"So, what does that mean, The Boy Who Lived?" Will asked carefully after four rounds of Exploding Snap.

Harry looked up at her, looking both surprised and curious. "You've never heard of me?"

"Should I have?" Will replied.

"Where'd you here that, 'The Boy Who Lived'?" Harry asked.

Will started to feel embarrassed. "Uh, a Chocolate Frog card."

Harry looked slightly uncomfortable, but launched into an explanation anyway. "You've heard of Voldemort right?"

"Yes…" Will replied.

"Well, when I was a baby, only a year old, Voldemort was had it in for my parents, and they hid, but he found them, and killed them. He tried to kill me too, but for some reason, he couldn't, the spell backfired."

"Oh. I'm sorry. I didn't know." Will said, quietly.

"Don't worry about it." Harry said. "I think I should warn you…so you'll know what's going on…Voldemort came back two years ago."

"Back? But I thought you said that the spell-" Will started.

"It's a long story." Harry interrupted.

"He hasn't…killed anyone yet, has he?" Will asked.

Harry frowned. "He's killed two people that I know about since he came back. Cedric Diggory…"

Will tensed at the name 'Cedric', but relaxed when she heard his last name.

"He was a friend of mine, not a close one, but he saved my life once." Harry said, deciding to leave out the details.

"I am so sorry, Harry." Will whispered, wishing she could offer something to show she understood, but she was couldn't think of anything that didn't involve Guardian business.

"Let's just forget it, and talk about something else." Harry quickly suggested.

"Like what?" Will asked, embarrassed that she couldn't think of a single thing to discuss.

"Well, how about I tell you about Hogwarts, just so you'll be better prepared for what goes on at the school."

Will beamed. "I'd love to hear about Hogwarts."

Harry began explaining by telling her about the four houses, then about the house heads, Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape, Professor Flitwick, and Professor Sprout. He started telling her about Professor Dumbledore, his voice filled with admiration, and Will could understand, looking back at the man she had met, but didn't say anything, not wanting to interrupt Harry, but something else did.

The compartment door slid open, rather forcefully, and Harry and Will, looked to see who had opened it.

Four teenagers stood in the doorway, three boys and a girl, all with ugly scowls on their faces. Two of the boys were very tall, and large, giving the impression that they could and would beat anyone the disliked, the girl had very short straight black hair, and her face was twisted in a way that made her look like a pug dog, and the last boy was all pale, even his hair and eyes, and the way he stood gave Will the thought that he was in charge.

Harry looked away from the group, turning his attention to the cards he had pulled out of his robe pocket, and Will decided to follow his example, reaching over to take another chocolate frog.

"Hey look, Draco, Potter's got a girlfriend." The girl laughed. "She looks like a Weasley too, with that red hair."

Will felt her face grow hot, and looked over at the girl. "I am not his girlfriend."

"She's got a temper, hasn't she?" The blonde boy said. "She could very be one of those Weasleys."

"Shove off, Malfoy." Harry said, hotly.

"Manners Potter. Pansy and I are prefects, and you aren't." The boy called Malfoy said. "You wouldn't want to get in trouble before you even get to school."

Will remained silent, but stared at the group, noticing the silver badges on the girl and Malfoy's black robes.

Malfoy looked back at her intensely. "Hey, you're no Weasley, you're Wilhelmina Vandom, my father wrote to me about you and those other girls."

Will went red at hearing her first name. "Don't you ever call me Wilhelmina."

"You're friends with Hale, aren't you? I saw you hanging around with her at Diagon Ally." Malfoy said, ignoring her demand.

"You mean Cornelia?" Will asked. "Yeah, so what?"

"Yeah, that was her name. You're other friends are named Lair, Cook, Lin, and Brown, aren't they?" Malfoy replied.

Harry got up. "Your dear old dad wrote to you from Azkaban to tell you that? How did he find out about that?"

Malfoy frowned. "Keep your mouth shut about my father, Potter. He'll be out before you know it."

"Hey Potter, how's your dog?" Pansy asked.

Harry went red. Malfoy must have told Pansy about Sirius, which was not a good thing at all, but hell if he was going to answer that.

"Leave him alone." Will snapped, standing at Harry's side.

"You'd best be quiet, mudblood." Malfoy said, coldly. "This is between me and Potter."

Harry pulled out his wand in a flash, point it at the group. "Take it back! Don't call her that, you-"

"What's going on here?" A voice asked.

Malfoy and his gang turned around, and behind them stood Ron and Hermione.

"Shove off you lot." Ron said, folding his arms. "I think you're better off at your seats, aren't you?"

Malfoy walked away, throwing one final look at Will, and his gang followed him.

"You all right, Harry?" Ron asked, walking into the compartment, sitting down next to where Harry stood, and helping himself to a Pumpkin Pastie.

Hermione walked in and sat down on the seat where Will had been Will, giving her a smile in greeting, which Will returned in kind.

Will and Harry both sat down, breathing out a sigh.

"Malfoy called Will a mudblood." Harry said in a grumble.

Hermione gasped and put a hand to her mouth, and Ron's immediately turned red.

"Why that slimly worm! I should go give him a piece of my mind!" Ron said.

"Ron, I don't think that's a good idea." Hermione said, shooting him a warning glance.

"What's a mudblood?" Will asked, utterly confused.

"Well…it means dirty blood. It's a really fowl name for someone who's muggle born. Malfoy's called me that more than once." Hermione explained.

"Malfoy's dad has been writing to him from Azkaban." Harry said, changing the subject.

"What? But the Dementor's aren't supposed to let the prisoner's send-" Hermione started.

Ron made loud cough, and glanced at Will.

Hermione went quiet and made the tiniest nod to show she understood.

Will had no idea what was going on, but she didn't ask, since it was clear that they didn't want to talk about whatever was going on in front of her, and she thought it would be rude to ask when she didn't know them very well.

All four of them spent the rest of the train trip talking about their summers, swapping Chocolate Frog cards, playing Exploding Snap, or watching Crookshanks chase a ball of yarn around the compartment.

Finally, at about eight o'clock, the train pulled up to Hogsmeade station.

"What about my luggage?" Will asked, as they stood up to leave the train.

"It's in the baggage car. They'll take the stuff to Hogwarts, so don't worry about it. If you've got an animal, you better take it though." Ron said, picking up Pigwidgeon's cage.

"Oh! I better go get Klaus!" Will exclaimed.

"Who's Klaus?" Hermione asked, picking up the basket Crooksanks was in.

"My frog." Will replied. "I left him with my friends. I'll see you." She left the compartment, and walked back to where Cornelia, Elyon, Irma, Taranee, and Hay Lin were sitting.

When she got there, the girls were picking up the cages with their animals in them, and Will noticed Elyon had a black and white cat.

Will went inside and picked up Klaus's cage. "That's a very pretty cat, Elyon."

Elyon smiled. "Thanks. Her name is Éowyn. I just fell in love with her."

Cornelia grinned. "Still a Lord of the Rings fan?"

Elyon grinned back. "Yep, I made Caleb bring me copies of the books over the summer."

The girl walked out of the train onto the platform, giggling over their conversation, with the cages holding their animals.

"Firs' years this way!" A familiar voice called.

"Hello Hagrid!" Will called to the man who was the first friend the Guardians had made in the magical world.

Hagrid walked over to them. "Hullo girls, and welcome to Hogwarts."

"Hagrid, this is Elyon-" Will began.

"Oh, I kno' Elyon, no need ta introduce us." Hagrid interrupted, smiling.

Cornelia turned to Elyon. "You know Hagrid?"

"He's the one who took me to Diagon Ally." Elyon replied.

"Elyon, ya did'n say you knew Will an the others." Hagrid said.

"I didn't know they were coming to Hogwarts." Elyon said. "But I shouldn't be surprised."

"Well, I gotta go, duty calls. Seeya 'round." Hagrid said, leading a group of first years off.

The girls walked to the coaches waiting up a hill, and climbed inside one, after being shocked at the creatures pulling the coaches.

"Did you see that? Did you see those horses!" Hay Lin said, shivering.

"They looked so ugly. What in the world were they? They looked dead." Taranee replied.

"Why would anyone want thing like those pulling their coaches." Irma asked, pulling her legs up onto her seat so she could hug her knees.

"What do you expect from a world full of magic?" Elyon replied shrugging.

"Yeah, besides, we've seen weirder stuff than that." Cornelia said casually.

The coaches rattled along the hill leading up to Hogwarts, and the girls crowded around the window to stare up at the magnificent castle.

'I wonder what it's like there.' Will thought, in awe.

Five minutes later, the coaches stopped and the girls got out, smiling and greeting their fellow students who were also climbing out of their coaches.

They looked up at a huge castle, which looked a thousand times more beautiful up close.

"Hey Will." A voice said.

Will turned to her left to see Harry standing slightly behind her. "Is this really the school?"

"Yep." Said Harry, looking over the castle as if it was his home that he hadn't been to in years. "Welcome to Hogwarts, Will."

**End Chapter Six**

A/N: I really have to credit the English course I took last fall for helping me make my writing all the more beautiful and interesting.

I had a wonderful Professor, and while she will never read this, I have to thank her so much for teaching me to make my words express the feelings I wanted them to, and for making me fall in love with writing all over again. I won't post her name, but I just wanted to give a thanks.

And of course a big thanks to me reviewers and loyal fans of my story. I know it's been taking me a long to time to write this, but thanks for keeping up.


	7. A Taste of Fate

A/N: The next rewritten chapter, enjoy. I can't believe I came up with such lame titles for the chapters.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter or W.I.T.C.H.

**Chapter Seven**

**A Taste of Fate**

Will, Irma, Taranee, Cornelia, Hay Lin, Elyon, Harry, Ron, and Hermione walked into the entrance hall, surrounded by the mass of black that was the robes of all the students pouring into the hall, the noise of chatting teenagers filling the fall.

Will took five steps, and slipped with a surprised gasp, as she heard several thuds that were all the people in the hall hitting the floor, and the pleasant chatting gave way to curses and shouts.

"Peeves!" An unfriendly voice shouted.

Will looked up and to her left, as she was trying to get to her feet, and saw a man with greasy long hair, and a horrible brown coat, leaning onto a black wooden cabinet so he wouldn't slip.

A little nasty looking man floated over the entrance hall, grinning and sneering at the scene below. "What's the matter Filch? Can't stand up with that big ol' head?" He cackled.

Will heard another thud, and someone slid into her, knocking them both against the staircase. "Ow! Watch it!" She snapped, turning onto her other side to face the person, and came face-to-face with Harry.

"Sorry." Harry said, turning slightly red, as her tried to help her to her feet, and they managed to sit on the staircase, both glad to be out of the embarrassing situation.

"I'll get the Baron!" The greasy haired man yelled, obviously frustrated. "You'll be out this time!"

The little man, Peeves gave a loud raspberry in response, and continued cackling.

"What's going on here!" A strict voice demanded.

An old woman, with her hair in a tight bun, wearing green robes was standing at the top of the marble stairs. "Off Peeves! The Baron will hear about this, as will Professor Dumbledore!"

The little man looked disappointed, but flew away muttering under his breath.

The woman walked to the bottom of the stairs, pulled out her wand and said: "Suflora."

Will and Harry stood up, hoping that the woman's spell had returned the floor to normal, the other students following their lead.

"Now then, I need the following students to come with me." The woman said. She took a scroll out of a pocket in her robes, and read it. "Cornelia Hale, Elyon Brown, Hay Lin, Irma Lair, Taranee Cook, and Wilhelmina Vandom."

The other girls came forward, gathering at the bottom of the stairs and looking nervously up at the woman.

Will turned to Harry. "See you later." She turned and joined her friends also looking curiously up at the woman.

"Yeah. Later." Harry said, going to join Ron and Hermione, who were talking to Seamus and Dean.

The rest off the students walked through the wooden doors of a room on the side of the hall, which had opened by themselves.

"Welcome to Hogwarts. I am Professor McGonagall. In a moment you will join your classmates. First, I need to inform you that after the feast, you will be taken to the headmaster's office so that we may get more information on your… gifts." Professor McGonagall paused. "You may now join your classmates in the sorting."

The girls walked into the crowd of first years just entering the entrance hall, and Will realized that they would be grouped with the kids who were about a foot or two shorter than them, which made her cheeks flush in embarrassment.

The huge oak doors opened again (Will hadn't noticed they had closed) and they walked inside, the girls trailing at the back, all wishing they could hide in the crowd.

At the front of the hall, where there was a long table with witches and wizards who must've been the teachers sitting in a long, there was also a stool on which sat an old and patched wizards hat.

Professor McGonagall Walked next to the stool and opened a scroll. "When I call your name, you will come up to be sorted."

After a few minutes of reading names, in alphabetical order of last name, Professor McGonagall called out one of the six friends names. "Brown, Elyon."

Elyon went pale, out of nervousness or embarrassment was anyone's guess, however, Elyon walked forward, sat on the stool, and placed the hat on her head.

Will suddenly noticed how nervous she was. She knew she belonged at Hogwarts, but what house did she belong in? She hardly even knew anything about the houses.

The hat yelled out the name of a house, snapping Will back to Earth. "Gryffindor!"

Loud clapping came from the Gryffindor table as Elyon took the hat off her head, and ran to the Gryffindor table and sat down next to Seamus, looking relived.

Professor McGonagall read a few more names, before she called: "Cook, Taranee."

Taranee gulped and walked forward, and she sat on the stool and placed the hat on her head, wringing her hands.

Moments later, the hat yelled: "Ravenclaw!"

The Ravenclaw table started cheering, some even standing up on the table, and Will wondered if they didn't get many students in their house.

Taranee sighed, took the hat off her head, ran to the Ravenclaw table and sat down next to Cho Chang.

After yet another few more minutes of calling names, Professor McGonagall called: "Hale, Cornelia!"

Cornelia bit her lip, walked to the stool, and put the hat on her head, her chin up, refusing to look nervous.

After a few minutes, the hat shouted: "Gryffindor!"

Cornelia smiled, took the hat off her head, and ran to the Gryffindor table, where Elyon, who was cheering the loudest, stood up, gave Cornelia a quick hug, and both girls sat down next to each other.

Will noticed several boys at the Gryffindor table, including Ron, were looking dreamily at Cornelia. Will had to force herself not to laugh when Hermione elbowed Ron hard in the ribs with a glare.

A few minutes later, McGonagall called: "Lair, Irma."

Irma smiled, and almost skipped to the stool, but her knees were shaking, even though she was smiling.

"Ravenclaw!" The hat yelled after what seemed like a long time.

Irma ran off and sat next to Taranee, immediately talking to the other students around her.

Will realized that she and Taranee might be in different houses, and they wouldn't get to see each other a lot, expect for classes and off time. Her heart sank at the thought.

"Lin, Hay." McGonagall called a few minutes later.

Hay Lin walked forward, and jammed the hat anxiously on her head, all smiles, probably not the slight bit nervous.

"Ravenclaw!" The hat shouted.

Hay Lin jumped up, ran to the Ravenclaw table, sat down next to Irma, and high fived her with a wide grin.

Many, many minutes passed before Professor McGonagall called: "Vandom, Wilhelmina."

Will didn't even flinch at the sound of her real first name, as she walked forward, almost like a dream, unable to feel her legs, and put the hat on her head as she sat.

'So? Wilhelmina Vandom, is it? But you like being called Will.' Said a scratchy voice in her ear.

'Yes.' Will thought, not bothering to wonder why this hat could talk.

'Very well, let's see. No, no, Slytherin is certainly not for you, not in the slightest. You wouldn't do badly in Ravenclaw, not a bad mind, not bad at all, but I don't think so. Hufflepuff wouldn't be a bad choice, however, you have more to offer than they could give you. But your courage, oh yes, there's a lot of it, so very much. A will to do what's right, and very truthful. You obviously belong in…' "Gryffindor!"

The Gryffindor table cheered.

Elyon and Cornelia stood up to greet Will as she ran to the table, then the three of them sat down together, talking.

After a few more names were called, the stool and the patched hat were taken out of the hall.

Food appeared out of thin air on the plates, and juice and water filled the jugs, to many gasps from the first years, not to mention the guardians.

Will stared around the table for a moment, and then piled mashed potatoes and chicken on her plate.

"You girls do know you're eating food made by slave labor," Hermione Granger's voice said.

Will, Cornelia, and Elyon turned to Hermione's voice at the same time.

Will hadn't even noticed she had sat down next to Hermione. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, come off it, Hermione." Ron said, taking a bite of a bright red apple. "Let 'em eat in peace."

"No I will not come off it, Ron. House elves are just as good as people, and should be treated that way." Hermione snapped. She turned back to Will, and Will decided Hermione was not someone she wanted to make an enemy of. "How would you like to join-"

"Leave them alone, and let them eat." Ron said, sounding as though they'd had this conversation a million times (Will guessed they probably had).

Hermione turned back to him. "Why can't you understand how important this is?"

Will rolled her eyes as the two continued arguing.

Cornelia and Elyon were talking to Seamus and Dean, who were sitting across from the girls.

At the Ravenclaw table Irma was talking to Luna Lovegood, both of who seemed to be laughing, and Hay Lin and Taranee were also making conversation.

Will continued eating, feeling a little left out, but, then again, she had been used to it before.

"Hi Will." A voice said.

Will looked up.

Harry was now sitting next to her, much to her surprise.

"Where'd Hermione go?" Will asked.

"She and Ron went to eat with the prefects. I thought you looked a little left out." Harry answered.

Will smiled. "Yeah, I guess I was."

She and Harry had a nice long talk, after Will asked Harry to explain to important things she needed to know about the school to her.

After everyone's plates were cleared, Dumbledore stood up, and the hall fell silent.

"Welcome to another year at Hogwarts! I am happy to see so many of you again, as well as some new faces." His eyes seemed to hover on Will for a moment, and he smiled. "Now-" Dumbledore started, but he was cut off when the huge doors opened, and two people walked into the room.

"Caleb!" Cornelia exclaimed.

Elyon slapped her hand over Cornelia's mouth. "Not now, Cornelia." She hissed.

"Caleb _and_ Yan Lin." Will whispered.

Over at the Ravenclaw table, the fellow guardians were just as surprised.

"It's my grandma." Hay Lin said in a hush, staring wide-eyed at Yan Lin.

"And Caleb." Irma added with a smirk. "Bet ya Cornelia's gonna flip."

Yan Lin and Caleb walked to the stuff table, and sat in two empty chairs down at the end of the table.

"Also, I would like to welcome Yan Lin and her assistant Caleb, to the Hogwarts staff as Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers." Dumbledore continued, still cheery as ever.

Yan Lin and Caleb stood to mild clapping, mostly coming from the still puzzled girls.

"No way, they're teaching here." Will said, still staring at the staff table.

"I guess so. I didn't think I'd see them here, that's for sure." Elyon said.

"But why didn't they say anything?" Cornelia muttered, sounding both pleased and annoyed with the sudden appearance of her boyfriend.

"You know them?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, Yan Lin is my friend Hay Lin's grandmother. And Caleb is-" She glanced over at Cornelia, who was staring with a slight frown at Caleb. She lowered her voice. "And Caleb is Cornelia's boyfriend."

"Well… that is weird." Harry replied.

"It sure is." Will said back.

"I have also been asked to remind students that the forest is off limits, and products from a store by the name of 'Weasly's Wizarding Wheezes' are banded. Now then, it is late, and I want you all alert for classes tomorrow." Dumbledore said.

Everyone in the hall stood and made their way out of the hall, chatter filling the hall.

Harry turned to Will as they stood. "Are you coming?"

"No, I want a word with Professor Dumbledore." Will said. "I'll see you later."

"Okay, later then." Harry replied, walking away.

Will sighed and turned to Elyon and Cornelia. "Let's go."

Irma, Taranee, and Hay Lin were also making their way up to the staff table, speaking in hushed voices to each other.

Cornelia saw Caleb walking out of the hall, and without saying a word to the others, hurriedly walked after him.

Meanwhile, Harry had caught up with Ron and Hermione, who had been waiting for him in front of the marble staircase.

"Where do you reckon they're going?" Ron asked.

"Will said she wanted a word with Dumbledore." Harry answered.

"There's something weird about those girls." Ron said, raising an eyebrow.

"There seemed nice to me. Well, Irma Lair was, that Taranee Cook kept giving me weird looks, but then most people do." Said a dreamy voice coming from behind them.

"Hello Luna." Harry said, smiling warmly at his strange friend. "So, you like them?"

"They're nice enough. Irma seems to like me." Luna answered, smiling back. "So, let's catch up shall we? How were your summers?"

Back in the hall, Yan Lin was already talking to Dumbledore when the rest of the girls got joined them.

"Grandma? What are you doing here?" Hay Lin asked, both eyebrows raised at her grandmother.

Yan Lin turned and smiled. "Hello girls. Where's Cornelia?'

"Talking to-" Hay Lin started, but that moment Cornelia walked up to the staff table with Caleb by her side, frowning slightly, but blushing.

"Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall said you wanted to speak to us after the feast." Will said sheepishly.

"Yes, I did. If you would follow me. Caleb, Professor Lin, I would like you to come too." Dumbledore said and he walked toward the oak doors.

Will, Elyon, Cornelia, Taranee, Hay Lin, Irma, Yan Lin, and Caleb followed Dumbledore up to the third floor, and up to a stone gargoyle.

"Spider Toffee." Dumbledore said.

The gargoyle came to life and leapt aside (which both startled and awed the guardians, while Elyon didn't seem surprised), and Dumbledore and the others walked onto the moving staircase.

When they entered the office, Dumbledore sat behind his desk, shuffling some papers in front of him. "What was it you wanted?"

"You probably know about our powers, but we thought we should show you in person exactly… what they are." Will replied.

"Very well, Miss Vandom." Dumbledore said.

Will sighed, and lifted her palm. "Guardians Unite."

Five steams of light left the Heart, magenta, a blue, a red, a green, and a silver, all flying to and entering the guardians bodies, all of whom became engulfed in that color of light, and when the light subsided, the girls stood at the guardians.

Elyon lifted her hands, and swirling white light flew from Elyon's hands, blinding for a second, and when it dimmed she was dressed in Meridian royal finery, complete with the Crown of Light.

All the girls turned to Dumbledore, wondering what the headmaster's reaction would be, and were revealed to see he was smiling, looking highly amused.

"Now, I have questions, as I'm afraid the ministry didn't tell much of anything about your powers, and I hope they are not too many for you." Dumbledore said, rising from his desk. "First, what is the purpose of these powers?"

"We are the guardians of the veil, our job is to keep the barrier between Earth and Meridian closed, and protect both worlds." Will replied. "I'm the holder of the Heart of Candracar, which holds our power, so I'm the leader in a way.

"What is Meridian?" Dumbledore asked. "And Candracar?"

"Meridian is the alternate earth I rule, on the other side of the veil, and because my parents died when I was young, I'm the Queen. Candracar is the… well, it's hard to describe, but it's from there that the role of the guardians was created." Elyon explained.

"Queen? That sounds like a really hard job for a sixteen year old." Dumbledore replied, eyes twinkling.

"Yes, well, I don't really have much choice in the matter." Elyon answered. "I was raised on Earth until I was fourteen, when I learned about all this, and had to overthrow my older brother Phobos."

"If you have an older brother, wouldn't he be the next in line for the throne?" Dumbledore asked.

"Meridian has always been ruled by Queens. Even though I am the younger sibling, I am a girl, therefore the heir." Elyon replied. "Anyway, Phobos was corrupt, and I had to take it upon myself to save Meridian." She looked at Will and smiled. "With the guardians help."

"Phobos is now in prison with most of his followers. Elyon and her guards catch more everyday." Cornelia added.

"Elyon's power is because of her bloodline, ours is because of this." Will said, letting the Heart float in front of her. "The Heart Candracar."

"It lets us transform into our guardian forms, giving us wings to fly," Hay Lin said, floating two feet off the floor as if to prove her point. "And powers over the elements."

"We protect the people of Meridian and Earth. We make sure the veil stays closed and there is peace between our worlds." Taranee explained.

"I would much like to see this in action, only a small demonstration, if you don't mind."

"No, sir, not at all. Hay Lin, would you go first?" Will said.

Hay Lin nodded, waving her hands back and forth, creating a light breeze around the office, stopping after a moment.

Cornelia took her turn next, stepping toward a plant in the corner. Cornelia put her hands out in front of her and waved them upward, and the plant, which was a small flowering plant, grew into a lush small bush, purple flowers popping up from small buds.

"Okay, that's enough." Will said, realizing Cornelia would probably continue otherwise.

Cornelia obediently waved her hands downwards, and the plant shrunk to its old size, but when no one was looking, she touched one small bud and a purple flower unfurled.

"Taranee, you next." Will said.

Taranee stepped toward the fireplace and pulled her hands toward her, and the fire came out of the fireplace and it crept across the floor, but didn't burn anything.

Taranee picked up a handful of flame for a little more drama. "Not only can I move fire, and shot it from my hands, I can make it so that it won't burn or give off heat." She put the handful of flame down, and waved her hands toward the fireplace, where the flames went back too.

"Irma-" Will started.

"No problem." Irma said. She stepped toward a bucket of water sitting conveniently in a corner (Will wondered if Yan Lin had told Dumbledore to have it placed there), and she threw her hands up in the air, and the water flew above her head. She did a number of tricks with the water before guiding it back to the bucket.

"Anybody got a cell phone or something?" Will asked. "Or any kind electronics?"

Cornelia reached into her bag that had been sitting in a corner and pulled out her cell phone. "Here."

Will set it on Dumbledore's desk, and waved her hand at it, and the phone turned on and played music (at which Dumbledore raised a white eyebrow). She changed the music a few times to show a little more of her ability and shut the phone off, picked it up, and handed it back to Cornelia.

Elyon stepped forward, lifted her hands, and white light poured from them. The light picked up and number of books on the floor and stacked them neatly on a table. The light then flew back into Elyon's hands.

Will took the floating Heart on her hands. "Change back."

There was a flash of light, and the girls were back in their school uniforms.

Elyon snapped her fingers, and she too changed back into her school uniform.

"I think I should tell you that I was once a Guardian myself. I gave Will the Heart three years ago." Yan Lin said. "Though I no longer posses the power over the air, I still have some magical powers left."

Cornelia and Caleb looked at each other, both debating something silently.

"Sir, is Caleb a teacher?" Cornelia asked slowly.

"Yes." Dumbledore answered, with a slight nod.

"And do I have to call him sir?" Cornelia asked.

"Why do you ask, miss Hale?" Dumbledore asked.

"Because-" Cornelia started, but then she blushed and didn't finish.

"Because Cornelia is my girlfriend." Caleb finished for her, a lot less embarrassed over the whole thing.

"I see. I would ask that you address each other as teacher and student when you are in class." Dumbledore replied, seriously.

"Yes, sir." Cornelia said, looking at the floor, blushing madly. "I guess that means you don't want us to see each other during the year."

"I did not say that Miss Hale, you may see each other when school is not in session." Dumbledore said.

Cornelia smiled at Caleb.

"It is now very late, if you would please go to Gryffindor tower and the Ravenclaw common room." Dumbledore said. "I assure you that you want all the energy you have tomorrow."

The girls nodded.

"Professor, may I walk the Cornelia, Elyon, and Will there?" Caleb asked, unsure of school conduct on that matter.

"Yes."

"I will take Irma, Taranee, and Hay Lin." Yan Lin said.

"As you wish."

"Thank you, sir." Will said, following the others down the moving staircase.

"You're very welcome, Miss Vandom." Dumbledore called after them, smiling.

Cornelia, Will, Elyon and Caleb walked up to Gryffindor tower.

When they got there, a portrait of a fat lady in a pink dress asked: "Password?"

"Loin Sphinx." Caleb said.

Elyon and Will climbed through the hole, and heard the fat lady shout: "I'll have none of that, thank you!" They looked over their shoulders at Cornelia and Caleb who had just pulled out of a kiss.

"Goodnight, Caleb." Cornelia whispered, eyeing the fat lady with dislike. Cornelia climbed through the hole, and the three girls walked up to the girl's dormitory.

When they got there, they found Hermione Ganger sitting up in bed reading a book, and no other girls in the dorm.

"Where are the other two girls who we saw earlier?" Will asked, walking to the bed that had her luggage beside it.

"Probably off snogging some boys somewhere." Hermione answered casually.

Will, Eylon, and Cornelia pulled on their pajamas, and climbed into bed.

"Goodnight, guys." Will said.

"Goodnight." Cornelia and Eylon replied.

"Goodnight." Hermione said, putting the book away, and climbing into bed.

All four girls lay down and drifted to sleep.

**End Chapter Seven**

A/N: I can't believe how long I made this chapter, took me weeks to rewrite this. It shouldn't have but I keep forgetting to actually sit down and work on it.

If you're wondering about the "no electronics" at Hogwarts thing, the idea is that Will's power is stronger and can overcome the enchantments on the school, same goes for the other guardians.

Please let me know what you think.


	8. Abnormal is Normal

A/N: Yet another rewritten chapter!

Thanks so much for taking the time to reread this story! I'm very grateful for it.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own W.I.T.C.H or Harry Potter.

**Chapter Eight**

**Abnormal is Normal**

Will woke up the next morning to hear two people auguring, and very loudly, much to her annoyance.

"Honestly Hermione! Why do you have to give us detention!" Lavender Brown's high voice yelled.

"You and Pavrti shouldn't have been out until four in the morning! You're just lucky a teacher didn't catch you! Mark my words, I'll tell McGonagall about this!" Hermione's reasoning voice snapped back.

"We had a good reason!" Lavender shouted.

"Snogging two Ravenclaw Qudditch players is not a good reason!" Hermione yelled, sounding like she was starting to loose her cool.

Will grudgingly got out of bed, pulled on her uniform, brushed her hair, and left the dormitory, Hermione and Lavender never seeming to notice.

Cornelia and Elyon were sitting by the fireplace, which still had some hot embers in it, left over from night, with Seamus and Dean, talking.

Will had a passing thought that both boys were interested in her friends for reasons other than possible new friends, but quickly pushed it out of her mind, walking over to the group. "Morning Elyon, Cornelia. I think we're supposed to meet Irma, Hay Lin and Taranee right?"

Cornelia and Elyon said goodbye to the boys and all three girls climbed out of the portrait hole, and into the hallway, heading for the great hall.

When they got there, they saw Irma, Hay Lin, and Taranee standing outside the hall, talking with Luna Lovegood.

"Good morning." Irma said, brightly. "We were waiting for you guys."

"Who's you new friend?" Cornelia asked.

"Haven't we met before?" Will asked Luna.

"Yes, I was with Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny at the train platform when we left for Hogwarts, I'm flattered you remember, most people don't. My name is Luna Lovegood, if you didn't know. I'm a close friend of Ginny's." Luna answered, beaming.

The girls walked into the hall together, said they'd see each other later, and walked to their house tables.

"I wonder what our first class will be." Elyon said, sitting down.

"I don't know, but it should be interesting." Cornelia replied, pouring herself some coffee.

"Well… at least the sixth years take some classes together. Maybe we'll get to take a class with Irma, Taranee, and Hay Lin." Will said, piling eggs onto her plate.

"I can't wait to take Yan Lin's class." Elyon stated. "I bet she'll be great.

"We'll have to call her professor, you know." Cornelia said, giggling.

"I wonder what we'll have to call Caleb." Elyon laughed.

"Professor? Sir? Something respectful obviously." Cornelia replied, also laughing. "Think about it, we'll have to show him more respect than he'll be able to show to you without giving anything away."

Will started laughing too, glad they were starting the day in such a good mood.

After breakfast, the girls looked at their schedules.

"We have Divination first, up in North Tower." Elyon said.

"We better head up there then." Cornelia sighed. "It's up on the seventh floor."

The girls put their books, and wands in their bags, and walked out of the hall.

On the way out of the great hall, they saw Harry, Ron and Hermione, and the girls walked over to greet them.

"Good morning." Cornelia said. "Heading up to North Tower too?"

"I'm going to Ancient Runes class, but Harry and Ron are on their way to North Tower." Hermione replied.

"Ancient Runes is only on the fourth floor, isn't it?" Elyon asked.

Hermione nodded, looking please.

"You're lucky. I'm not looking forward to walking up to North Tower." Will groaned, and the six of them climbed the marble stairs together.

When the reached the fourth floor, they said goodbye to Hermione and continued up the marble staircase.

They reached North Tower, where a line of Gryffindor sixth years waited below a trapdoor, five minutes early.

"Is that where class is?" Elyon asked, looking up at the trapdoor curiously.

"Yeah, the old bat likes to live away from normal human beings." Ron replied in a grumbling tone.

"The old bat?" Elyon asked.

"That's just what Harry and I call her. Her name's Professor Trelawney, and she a right old fraud." Ron answered. "She looks like some kind of bug or bat."

"Don't say that about her! She's amazing!" Lavender Brown cried, at which Ron rolled his eyes.

"Who should I believe?" Will whispered to Harry.

"Ron. She's predicted my death every year for three years, and yet here I am still alive." Harry whispered back, laughing a little.

"Every year for three years?" Will said, shocked.

"Ron told you, she's a fraud. She's only ever made two real predictions in her life." Harry replied.

"Only two? Then why did Dumbledore hire her?" Will asked, more herself than Harry.

"He had his reasons." Harry muttered.

The trapdoor opened, and a dreamy voice drifted down the ladder. "Come in, my children, come in."

The line began to move as the students climbed one by one up the ladder.

When Will got to the top, she had a strong wish to climb back down.

The room was dark, hot, and smelled strongly of roses, and suffocating.

"Good morning class. It's so good to see you have all made it back safe and sound." A voice said behind Will.

Will turned.

A woman who looked like some sort of colorful bug was standing by a table. "Please, sit down. I pair you into groups of two in a moment." She said.

Will sat down on the floor between Cornelia and Harry.

"This term, we will be reviewing the noble art of Crystal Grazing." The woman said. "Now, I will pair you."

She paired many of the students, and then came to Elyon, Cornelia, and Will. "Please stand." She requested.

The three girls stood, trying to be straight and not fidget, even under the woman's chilling graze.

"You are newcomers. Your names, please." The woman said, dreamily.

"Cornelia Hale, professor." Cornelia answered.

"Elyon Brown, ma'am."

"Will Vandom, sir."

"Oh! Miss Brown! The aura of tragedy is all around you! Have you any loved ones left you?" The woman exclaimed, making a show of herself. "Your beloved older brother, perhaps?"

"I don't have any siblings." Elyon replied sourly, frowning.

"Oh. Well, you miss Hale have an aura of one who has a broken heart. I sense it is because someone you love dearly does not return those feelings. A young man, is it not?" The woman tried again, seeming unfazed by Elyon's response.

"Actually ma'am, the young man I love returns the feeling very strongly." Cornelia said, fighting a smirk.

Harry and Ron, who were sitting on the floor still, started laughing quietly.

"Well then. You, miss Vandom, are a leader. You hate it, don't you my poor dear?"

"I love being a leader, professor." Will said.

"I see." Professor Trelawney said. "Miss Hale and miss Brown, you two will be partners. Miss Vandom and Mr. Potter, you will work together."

"What! But professor-" Ron started.

"You and Mr. Potter always fool around when you work together. I am separating you for the sake of the inner eye." Professor Trelawney snapped. "You, Mr. Weasley, will be working with Mr. Thomas."

Ron frowned, stood up, and walked over to the table where Dean was sitting.

Cornelia and Elyon walked over to a table in the corner, sat down, and started talking.

Harry stood up, and he and Will walked over to a table and sat down.

Will stared at the crystal ball nervously. 'This is the soft of thing Taranee or Hay Lin would be good at.' She thought.

"Now, I want you to look beyond what you know, see, and hear. See your partners future." Professor Trelawney said.

"I'll go first if you want." Will offered.

"No, I'll go first." Harry said. He stared into the crystal ball intently.

"Well?" Will asked. "Do you see anything?"

"Yeah. Fog, and lots of it." Harry said.

Will giggled, thinking maybe class wouldn't be _so _bad.

* * *

"That was the biggest load of crap I've ever heard!" Cornelia snapped, as she, Elyon and Will walked down the marble staircase. "What was the big idea telling me that "the position of the moon will spell disaster for me"?"

"Well, we have Defense Against the Dark Arts with the Ravenclaw's next." Eyon said, looking at her seclude.

"That's an upside." Will said.

The girls arrived at the third floor ten minutes early, and walked into the classroom anyway.

The room was mostly empty.

Harry and Ron were sitting at a desk, while Hermione was at the front of the classroom, talking to Caleb.

Hay Lin and Irma were laughing at something, and Taranee was doodling in her notebook.

Will told Elyon and Cornelia that she was going to talk to Taranee, and walked off, and Cornelia took the opportunity to speak to Caleb when Hermione had finished.

Elyon decided to wait in the hall outside the classroom, so she slipped quietly out of the room and began pacing in the halls, looking around at the moving paintings.

"Hey, Brown." A voice said.

Elyon stopped pacing and turned.

Draco Malfoy was standing by a suit of armor, arms folded

"What do you want?" Elyon asked, trying to sound polite.

"Do you know where professor Snape is? He's not in his office." Malfoy replied casually.

"Sorry, no." Elyon said, not believing her was asking _her_ that.

"Are you muggle born?" Malfoy asked.

'That was very random.' Elyon thought. "I was raised by magical beings in hiding as muggles, and my real parents were magical, but that's all I know about them. I never knew them."

"Oh." Malfoy replied, taking on a thoughtful look.

'What's with him? Cornelia said he was a jerk, but he's being almost nice, no, more like curious.' Elyon thought. "Maybe professor Lin knows where Snape is." She suggested.

"No, thank you, Brown." Malfoy said, starting to walk away. "Say hello to Hale for me."

Elyon felt a flash of anger, and ran in font of Malfoy, blocking his path. "Her name is Cornelia, not 'Hale'! And my name is not 'Brown', it's Elyon!" Elyon shouted, staring into Malfoy's cold blue eyes.

Malfoy stared right back into Elyon's glaring blue eyes. "Well then, thank you, Elyon." He walked around Elyon, and then paused. "See you later."

Elyon turned but Malfoy had already left. "Yeah." She turned back, and walked back into the classroom.

Will, Irma, Hay Lin, and Taranee were all clumped around single desk, looking at a wizarding newspaper, highly amused.

Cornelia was sitting by herself at a desk, following Caleb with her eyes. She looked over her shoulder at Elyon. "Elyon! I saved you a seat!"

Elyon walked over and sat down.

"You okay?" Cornelia asked. "You look kinda flushed."

Elyon nodded, silently. 'What was Malfoy doing talking to me? I thought Slytherin's hated Gryffindor's.' She thought.

Over the next few minutes, the room filled with Ravenclaw and Gryffindor sixth years.

"Welcome to Defense Against the Dark Arts class. I am Professor Yan Lin, and this is my assistant, Professor Caleb." Yan Lin said, standing in front of the class.

"Doesn't he have a last name?" A brown haired Ravenclaw boy, who was sitting in the front row, asked.

Will looked over at the boy. 'How rude was that?' She thought.

Yani Lin turned to the boy. "What is your name?"

"Grayham. Tristan Grayham." The boy replied.

"Well, Mr. Grayham, I would like it very much if you would raise your hand." Yan Lin said. She turned back to the class. "This term we will- Yes Mr. Grayham?"

"You didn't answer my question. Does Caleb have a last name?"

"What a snob." Elyon whispered to Cornelia.

"Tell me about it." Cornelia whispered back. "I'm just worried about how Professor Lin is going to answer."

Over at the desk where she was sitting with Irma, Hay Lin was muttering under her breath, occasionally in Chinese. Irma caught "How dare he talk to my grandma like that" and "Stupid bone brain" in Hay Lin's muttering.

"Of course I have a last name." Caleb spoke up. "Green is my last name."

"Oh god, Caleb." Cornelia muttered, putting a hand on her forehead. "You could have picked a better last name."

"If you two get married, you'll be Cornelia Green." Elyon whispered teasingly.

"Great." Cornelia sighed, putting her other hand over her face.

"And from now on, Mr. Grayham. You will address Yan Lin and me as 'professor' or 'sir'. Is that understood?" Caleb said.

"Yes, sir." Grayham said.

"Now let us start the lesson." Yan Lin said. "This term, we will be studying Zone Eaters.'

Caleb took a cloth off of what looked like a huge box, which turned out to be a cage.

Inside was something that looked almost like a dog, only it had sickly green fur, blood red eyes, long, sharp fangs, two tails, and six toes on each paw."

Elyon cringed.

"What's wrong?" Cornelia asked.

"Zone Eaters were Phobos' favorite pets. Back when I trusted him, unknown to me, when I slept he had Zone Eaters outside my door, guarding me so that I couldn't escape, and no one could get me out." Elyon explained. "I don't know a lot about them though."

Cornelia's eyes widened. "So, they're from Metamoor?"

Elyon nodded.

"But why would Yan Lin bring something over from the other side of the veil?" Cornelia asked.

"Beats me. I wonder how she caught it." Elyon replied.

"Zone eaters are very cunning animals. They are not easily caught, and can only be tempted with pray. Zone Eaters also have a sort of sixth sense, and are aware of ghosts and magical energy. If threatened, Zone eaters will sometimes create a tear in the fabric of time, and escape to the past or future, always landing in the same spot from where they left, and are capable of returning anytime they like. Zone Eaters are very loyal and will protect their masters and do their bidding even at the cost of their own lives. Sometimes, a Zone Eater will become friendly and playful, but only if a strong witch or wizard performs a spell. So, you would do best to stay away from Zone Eaters." Yan Lin explained. "Now I would like you to read the chapter about Zone Eaters in your books."

"How can there be a chapter about Zone Eaters if they're not from Earth?" Cornelia said.

"I'll be Yan Lin wrote it, and then magically put it in the book." Elyon whispered.

"Maybe. I still wonder why she's teaching us about things from Metamoor." Cornelia said.

* * *

Phobos awoke in a dark, cold room, and he sat up and looked around.

The bed he was lying on was old and torn, as were the chairs. The single window was broken and brown with dirt. The floor was also old, and there were many holes in it.

"Where am I?" Phobos said along, frowning.

"You are awake. Good." A cold voice said.

Phobos stood and turned to the voice, and saw a person who looked very snake-like. "Who are you?" He demanded.

"I am Lord Voldemort." The man replied.

"Why have you brought me here?" Phobos asked standing and glaring at the man.

"I thought you would make a good ally, so I had some of my death eaters go through the veil and get you out of your prison." Voldemort answered.

"What's in it for me if I agree to be your ally?" Phobos snapped. "What's going on?"

"Revenge. Revenge on your sister and the guardians of the veil." Voldemort replied.

Phobos' eyes widened. "You know where they are?"

"Yes. I want the guardians powers for myself. If you agree to help me, I will let you do what you wish with your sister." Voldemort said.

"Where are they! I must know before I agree to anything!" Phobos shouted, his voice rising by the moment.

"Yes, yes you should. They are at Hogwarts, a school for witches and wizards in training. They are learning how to use their powers even better as we speak."

"They could get even stronger than they are?" Phobos snorted, shaking his head in disbelief. "That would be… unfortunate."

"My thoughts exactly." Voldemort replied. "Unfortunately, we cannot attack the school. The magic is to powerful for even me to break, but you know the guardians and your sister better than I, so if you agree, we may have a chance at not only stealing their powers, but killing them."

Phobos smiled coldly. "Very well. I agree."

**End Chapter Eight**


	9. He's Here

A/N: More rewritten material and not much to say… I should mention it's a real challenge to write Hagrid's dialogue because of his accent.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own W.I.T.C.H or Harry Potter.

**Chapter Nine**

**He's Here**

"So what've we got next?" Will asked as she, Cornelia, and Elyon left the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, surrounding by excited voices.

"Lunch." Cornelia answered.

"That's my favorite subject." Elyon laughed.

The girls walked into the Great Hall and sat down at the Gryffindor table.

Moments later, they were joined by Harry, Ron, and Hermione, Hermione talking rapidly about something that had happened in her Arithmancy class while Harry and Ron barely listened.

"So what'd you girls think of the lessons?" Ron asked, grabbing three sandwiches, and putting them on his plate.

"They're okay." Will said. "Strange, but I should've expected that."

"I liked everything expect Divination and History of Magic." Elyon replied, biting into an apple.

"I know. Doesn't Professor Bins know how boring he is?" Cornelia said dully.

"Nope. He doesn't even know he's dead." Harry replied with a chuckle. "At least, that's the rumor."

"What!" Will, Elyon, and Cornelia exclaimed.

"Anyway, the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers seem nice." Harry said. "I wonder what kind of experience they have."

"I dunno, maybe they work at the ministry." Ron replied through his stuffed mouth, earning a glare from Hermione.

"No, they don't work at the ministry." Will replied.

"How'd you know?" Ron asked.

"Because Yan Lin was the one who taught us how to use our magic before we came here." Will answered.

"You mean she taught you, Cornelia, Taranee, Irma, and Hay Lin." Elyon corrected Will. "I wasn't exactly in the picture."

"Who taught you then?" Harry asked.

"I mostly taught myself. Some things I learned from my stupid older brother." Elyon replied, frowning.

"I thought you said you don't have siblings." Ron said raising an eyebrow.

"She doesn't like to even think about him." Cornelia said quickly. "Well, you know how siblings are, always fighting and stuff. My little sister and I fight all the time."

"I know what you mean, I've got six siblings." Ron said. "Anyway, how do you know Professor Green?"

"He's a friend of ours." Cornelia replied slowly.

Elyon grinned, as if to tease Cornelia, but didn't say anything.

Ron noticed Elyon's grin. "Is he your boyfriend, Elyon?"

"No! He's Cornelia boyfriend." Elyon snapped. She clapped her hands over her mouth and gave a muffled curse.

Cornelia blushed, but, to Will's surprise, didn't say or do anything.

"Where's Hermione?" Will asked, changing the subject for Cornelia's sake.

"I didn't even notice that she was gone." Cornelia noted.

"She went to talk to Hagrid about something." Harry answered.

* * *

"What do you know about the new girls Hagrid?" Hermione asked.

Hermione had come to Hagrid's hut to find him in his garden putting Grindylows into tanks.

"All I'm gonna tell ya is dat those six girls are special." Hagrid replied. "Can' say nothin' else."

"But why did they come to Hogwarts and not to the school in America?" Hermione asked, pressingly.

"They were too ol' to start at their school, an' Dumbledore was the only one who'd take them inta his school."

"There's something about them, especially Will Vandom. It's like there's this power around them wherever they go." Hermione said, climbing up to sit on the fence post.

"Hermione, those girls business is their own, an' what they're doing here is between Dumbledore and Professor Lin." Hagird said, signaling the conversation closed.

Hermione was about to question him further about what Professor Lin had to do with it, when she heard someone call her name. She turned to see Gryffindor and Slytherin sixth years walking toward the hut. Sighing, she dropped off the fence and went to meet Harry and Ron.

"What did you ask Hagrid about?" Ron panted, obviously having run the whole way.

"Nothing." Hermione replied simply.

"Gather 'round! Goyle, tie your shoes! Crabbe, spit out that gum! Now today we're goin' ta review Grindylows. Pair up into groups o' two." Hagrid said.

Cornelia and Elyon stepped closer to each other immediately.

"Sorry you two but I want a Gryffindor to work with Mr. Malfoy. Elyon, would you be kind enough?" Hagrid said.

Elyon sighed and nodded. She walked over to Malfoy, trying to hide her displeasure.

"Hi Elyon, did you say hello to Cornelia for me?" Malfoy said with a snicker.

"Shut up." Elyon snapped quietly. 'At least he called us by out first names.' She thought.

Hermione and Ron decided to work together, so did Will and Cornelia, and Harry and Seamus.

After a long explanation, during which Malfoy tried to grab Elyon's hand and his foot stomped on for it, each pair was told to pick a tank.

"All I want ya ta do this term is study the Grindylows, then turn in a eight page report on Grindylows written by both partners." Hargrid explained. "So for the next half an hour just take notes on the beasts."

* * *

In a Dark room of the old Riddle manor, a cauldron full of light purple liquid sat bubbling.

Phobos stood over the cauldron, smirking. 'In mere moments, the guardians will know have returned.'

The liquid began to steam, smelling foul.

Phobos grinned. "And now, Wilhelmina Vandom, learn the truth about my whereabouts."

* * *

Will lay on her stomach on the green grass taking notes on the Grindylow, while Cornelia sat cross legged poking it with her wand to see what it would do so Will could take notes on it.

Hermione was speeding through her notes, while Ron lay on his back staring up at the sky, not paying any attention.

Elyon was drawing the Grindylow, while Malfoy, who pretending to be taking notes, was looking at her from the corner of his eye. Elyon was aware of this, but she ignored him.

Will sighed, and scratched her head.

Suddenly, a very blurred image flashed in her head of Phobos shaking hands with a tall, extremely thin snake like man.

For a second, Will thought she would be sick, but then she felt the Heart pulse in her palm, and the image was gone. Will had seen the snake like man somewhere before, but it was Phobos she needed to worry about.

He was back, she could feel it now, and he must be looking for the guardians and Elyon. He must be looking for the Heart.

Will needed to tell Elyon and Cornelia now. "Sir, could Elyon and Cornelia take me to the infirmary? I've got a really bad headache."

"Ya only need one, Miss Vandom, Elyon can go with ya." Hagrid replied.

Will and Elyon gathered their things, Cornelia looking curiously at the two and walked toward the castle.

"Why did you want both of us to take you to the infirmary?" Elyon asked when they were out of earshot from Hagrid's hut. "That must mean something important."

"Because I have to tell you something right now." Will answered urgently. "Phobos is back. He's here in England somewhere."

* * *

"Damn. The Heart cut off my link with the girl." Phobos said, gripping the sides of the cauldron "No matter, she knows I'm here."

**End Chapter Nine**


	10. Potions and Unknowing

**Disclaimer: **I do not own W.I.T.C.H or Harry Potter.

**Chapter Ten**

**Unknowing**

"WHAT!" Elyon shouted, dropping all of her things with a thud. "But the oracle is guarding him! How could he have escaped!"

"I don't know, all I know is we need to be careful." Will said, trying to keep her voice calm. "And Phobos is working with someone, some guy who looks like a snake."

"A snake?" Elyon questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Don't ask." Will said.

"Are you sure you saw him? Maybe you were only imaging it." Elyon said, trying to make up any excuse to explain this besides Phobos' really being here.

"Yes! I saw him! The Heart wouldn't have reacted if it had been my imagination." Will replied.

"Are you sure you didn't hit your head or something?" Elyon asked, desperately.

"Elyon! I know what I saw!" Will yelled, not meaning to be so harsh.

"Okay! I believe you!" Elyon replied. "So what do we do?"

"We tell Yan Lin, Caleb, and the others. Send a message to Vathek later telling him what's happened. We have to be as ready as possible to fight him." Will said.

"Our only problem is we don't know what he wants. We don't know what to be ready for." Elyon pointed out. "Although it's a fair bet he probably wants me."

"We also don't know who he's working with." Will added. "But Elyon, I promise we will stop Phobos. I mean, we beat him once, didn't we?"

"I know, but he's working with someone we don't know anything about." Elyon replied, folding her hands in front of her. "I have a feeling this will be a much harder fight than last time."

"Well, come on. The lessons should be over soon and we need to head to the castle and get to the next lesson before everyone else so it looks like we really did go to the hospital wing." Will said.

The two girls walked up to the castle at a fast pace so they would get to their next lesson before everyone else.

"When do we tell Yan Lin?" Elyon asked, as they walked down the steps leading to the dungeon.

"At break." Will answered.

"But that's an hour away!" Elyon said. "Caleb and Yan Lin need to know now!"

"Elyon, I want to tell them too, but do you want to miss a lesson on the first day of school?" Will replied.

Elyon was silent, understanding Will's point. "I certainly don't want to be on anyone's bad side."

"Everyone's on Snape's bad side, except the Slytherins." A voice said. "There's just no getting around it."

Will and Elyon stopped and turned.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione, with Cornelia tagging along, were heading toward them.

"Are you feeling better, Will?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, thanks." Will replied with a small smile.

"What do you mean everyone's on Snape's bad side?" Cornelia asked Ron, as they walked over to join Will and Elyon.

"He hates Gryffindors, everyone of us." Ron replied bitterly. "Why is anybody's guess."

"Just because we're Gryffindors?" Cornelia asked.

"Bingo." Ron said.

"Well, that's just stupid." Cornelia stated with a snort.

"Quiet! You want him to hear you? I swear he has ears in the walls." Ron whispered harshly as he set off again.

Hermione jogged to catch up with him. "Ron! That was very rude!" She hissed in his ear.

"I for one didn't want Gryffindor to lose a hundred points and get my rear thrown in detention." Ron replied stubbornly.

"Cornelia is new! She doesn't know anything about Snape!" Hermione snapped.

Elyon, Cornelia, Harry, and Will stared after the arguing friends for a moment, and then followed them.

Cornelia and Elyon began chatting away, completely unconcerned.

"Are Hermione and Ron always like that?" Will asked Harry.

"Not all the time, just most of the time." Harry answered with a shrug.

"How do you put up with that?" Will asked.

Harry shrugged again. "I dunno. I guess you can just put up with a lot from your friends. You what I mean?"

Will glanced over at Cornelia and then nodded. "Yeah. I know what you mean."

"I've known Ron and Hermione six years now, we've all had our arguments." Harry replied.

They arrived outside the classroom, where the Gryffindor and Slytherin sixth years were waiting.

"Hey, Draco's not here." Elyon said, looking through the crowd.

"Good, then he's not here to bug us about anything." Cornelia replied coolly.

"Yeah." Elyon agreed, rather absent-mindedly.

The classroom doors opened by themselves and the students walked into the room.

Will looked around the dark classroom and shivered. 'This reminds me of Phobos' castle.'

Elyon and Cornelia were thinking along the same lines. "This place gives me the creeps." Elyon said.

Cornelia nodded. "What kind of guy is this Snape person? Ron obviously doesn't like him."

Cornelia and Elyon sat down at a desk that was next to a large cauldron, but didn't start talking like they usually did, both nervous.

Harry and Ron sat a row above Elyon and Cornelia, opened their books and talked in hushed voices.

Hermione and Will sat down at the same desk, across from the desk Harry and Ron sat at.

Will looked around nervously.

"Don't worry. Professor Snape's not all bad." Hermione whispered with a friendly smile.

"Come on, Hermione. Don't get her hopes up." Ron said with a yawn. "We all know Snape's an old bat."

Will couldn't help but giggle.

"Snape is a teacher! Do you know what he would do if he heard you!" Hermione said harshly.

"Please don't start fighting again." Will begged.

"Yeah. Save some of it for tonight when Ron's trying to copy your homework, Hermione." Harry said dully.

Will giggled again.

Ron and Hermione glared at each other then turned their attention to their books.

Will rolled her eyes. 'They're just as bad as me and Cornelia are most of the time.' She thought.

There was a bang and Will turned to see a door at the front of the room had flown open, and two people and walked into the room.

One of them was Malfoy, who looked around the room with frightened eyes before walking to the back of the room and sitting by himself.

Elyon's eyes followed him to the desk where he sat down, but snapped to the front of the room when he turned his head toward her.

The other was a tall pale man with greasy black hair and was wearing all black. "I know that there are three new students here. Please stand."

Elyon, Cornelia and Will all stood up.

"Pity. All Gryffindors." The man, who must have been Snape, said.

'So Ron was right.' Will thought, feeling her hopes disappear.

"Which on of you is Elyon Brown?" Snape asked.

"I am, sir." Elyon said.

Snape looked at Elyon for a long tense filled minute. "Sit down, miss Brown."

Elyon sat down quickly. She may have been a queen, but she knew a person who she should obey when she saw one.

"Which one of you two is Cornelia Hale?" Snape asked.

"That's me, sir." Cornelia said.

He looked over at her and Cornelia shivered in that greasy glare. "All right, now sit."

Cornelia was only too glad to obey and get his dark eyes off of her.

"Then you must be Wilhelmina Vandom." Snape said coldly, his dark eyes falling on Will now.

Will didn't have the courage to say anything under that cold gaze.

"You can sit down now, miss Vandom." He said, turning away to write on the black board behind him.

"Yes, sir." Will said, sitting down.

"Now today, we will be making a freezing potion. A person doesn't need to drink a freezing potion to be affected by it. One small touch will freeze a person for a few moments, while if a person where to be covered in it, they would be frozen for a day or two. The ingredients are on your desks and the instructions are on the blackboard. You have an hour. Begin."

Will and Hermione cut and sliced the ingredients (most of which Will didn't know what they where and was sure she didn't really want to know) and added them to the potion one at a time.

Halfway through the lesson, Snape said: "Your potion should now be a clear blue color."

Will looked down at the potion, from the star roots she was cutting, and was relived to see it was clear blue, probably only because Hermione was her partner.

Cornelia and Elyon's potion was clear blue as well, and Harry and Ron's potion was milky green, over which Ron seemed to be panicking slightly but Harry didn't seem surprised.

The room smelled really horrible because of Neville's purple smoking potion.

And so the lesson continued, with Harry and Ron trying everything to fix their potion, and Neville's potion making the whole room smokey and smelly while Dean, who was working with him, frantically read the text book.

At the end of the lesson, Snape walked from cauldron to cauldron, giving comments to each of the students.

He looked at Cornelia and Elyon's potion for a minute before he said: "Acceptable. Barely"

Elyon and Cornelia sighed as he walked away. "I don't like him." Cornelia whispered.

Elyon nodded in agreement.

He came to Harry and Ron's cauldron, in which the potion was a dull grey, when it should have been silver. "Now, now, looks like I shall have to give you extra homework on the theory of this potion." He said, coldly.

Harry and Ron didn't seem to be surprised, even though their potion wasn't that far off.

He came to Will and Hermione's cauldron, and peered into the steaming silver potion, which was just how it was supposed to be, and frowned. "Acceptable."

When they were dismissed from class they walked up toward the entrance hall.

"Thank god that's it for lessons." Ron sighed, running a hand through his already messing hair. "We still have a mess of homework though."

"I'll help you two, that was completely unfair of Snape." Hermione said, frowning herself.

"That reminds me, Will. We're partners in Divination, so we have to do our homework together." Harry said.

"Oh right, let's do it around seven, I have things to do before then." Will replied.

"Okay." Harry agreed with a nod. "That's fine with me."

"We have to go talk to Professor Lin now. We'll see you at dinner." Cornelia said, glancing at Will with a look that said 'NOW'.

"Yeah, we'll see you later." Will said, following Elyon and Cornelia up the marble stairs.

After they were sure no one was around, they started running up to Yan Lin's office.

"I hate wearing skirts!" Will said, as they ran up the second floor hallway towards the stairs. "It's so hard to run in them!"

"Better get used to it." Elyon panted. "It's part of the uniform."

They reached the classroom and burst inside.

Yan Lin looked up from her books, and Caleb nearly dropped the glass vase he was carrying with a single lily in it as the girls skidded to a halt.

"Watch it!" Caleb said, setting down the vase and frowning at the girls.

"Girls, what is the matter?" Yan Lin asked calmly.

"Phobos!" Cornelia and Elyon cried in unison.

"He's back! He's here on Earth!" Will said urgently.

'What!" Caleb exclaimed. "That's impossible! The oracle is guarding him!"

"But I saw him! I had a vision!" Will replied. "The Heart reacted to the vision so it was real."

"I believe Will. The keeper of the Heart can see many things that happen. We must warn Meridian and the other guardians if we are to be ready for him." Yan Lin said, standing up.

"There's a problem there. He's working with someone from Earth, someone we don't know anything about. And on top of that, we don't know what he wants." Cornelia replied.

"I think I know what he wants." Elyon said. "Revenge. He wants revenge against the guardians of the veil and the Queen of Metamoor who ruined his plans."

"One thing's for sure, you girls will have to be very careful." Caleb said, concerned.

* * *

After an hour-long talk with Yan Lin and Caleb, Cornelia, Will, and Elyon, walked down to dinner.

They were mostly quiet and only talked among themselves in whispers.

When they were leaving the great hall, they saw Taranee, Hay Lin, and Irma following Yan Lin and Caleb out up the marble stairs with puzzled looks on their faces.

"We'll have to talk to them about tomorrow, we can't risk it in the open." Cornelia whispered to Will, who nodded.

After dinner, they walked up to the seventh floor solemnly and up to the Fat Lady.

"Loin Sphinx." Elyon said.

"Well said, my dear." The Fat Lady replied, swinging forward.

The girls climbed into the common room.

"Will!"

Will looked up to see Harry sitting by the fire with a mess of papers around him. 'That's right. We're supposed to do our homework together.' She walked over to him and sat down. "I'm sorry, Harry. My friends and I had something to discuss with Professor Lin."

"No problem." Harry replied. "Let's just get to work so it'll be over with."

Will smiled and picked up a star chart, and began to read the different stars off to Harry, while he made predictions.

Will had good time the rest of the night, working with Harry on their homework, however they spent more time joking around then working.

When Will went to bed that night, she felt as though she had made a new friend.

**End Chapter Ten**

A/N: Basically all I did to this chapter was add more detail. Hope you enjoyed it.


	11. The New Team Members

A/N: I've been taking elements from both the show and the books, and in this story I will be using the part from the show where they can all fly, not just Hay Lin.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own W.i.t.c.h. or Harry Potter. I'm just a crazed fan writing a story about the two.

**Chapter Eleven**

**The New Team Members**

September quickly turned into October, and the grounds were covered with red, orange, and yellow leafs that made delightful crunching noises when you trod through them on the way to class.

Will was very happy to learn that Harry would be her partner in Divination for the rest of the school year, while poor Elyon was unhappy to learn that Malfoy would be her Care of Magical Creatures partner for the rest of the school year and everyone was unhappy when Snape made potions more difficult and was even meaner to everyone, even the Slytherins.

One Saturday morning in the first week of October, Will came down into the common room after brushing her teeth after breakfast to find a bunch of people crowded around the notice board in the common room.

"What's going on?" Will asked.

"Qudditch tryouts are tomorrow." Ginny Weasly said.

"I'm going to tryout for beater!" A second year boy cried.

"Me too!" Another second year boy, who was probably the other one's twin judging by the fact that they looked almost the same, said.

"Me three!" A fourth year girl cried.

"Alice, you know mum doesn't want you playing Qudditch." A seventh year boy, who must have been the girl's older brother, scolded.

"But John!" The girl whined.

Will had been so caught up in listening to everything that was going on, that she hadn't noticed the crowd had closed in around her, trapping her. She tried to break out of the crowd of students, but the more she tried to elbow her way out, the more people seemed to crowd her, which was frustrating.

Then a hand grabbed hers, and pulled her out of the crazy, yanking crowd.

Will sighed, and looked into familiar friendly stunning green eyes. "Thanks Harry."

"No problem. It's always like this when word gets out about Qudditch tryouts." Harry said. "Look at them. I swear they're gonna kill someone." Harry grumbled. "Oi! You lot!"

The crowd fell silent and looked over their shoulders at Harry.

"You know that rules! Go talk to McGonagall then show up at the tryouts! Now clear off, I'm sure you all have better things to be doing on a Saturday!" Harry yelled, a tone of anger in his voice.

The crowd slowly disbanded, some going into the dorms, some leaving the common room, and others (mostly teenage giggling girls) sat around the common room and start making a lot of noise.

"So, what is Qudditch anyway?" Will asked.

"Let's go to the library, shall we? It's much quieter there." Harry suggested.

"Okay." Will agreed.

Will followed Harry out of the common room and down to the third floor.

When the two were about to go into the library, they heard giggling.

Will looked toward to noise, and froze embarrassment flooding through her.

Caleb and Cornelia were flirting and hugging by the statue of the one eyed witch. Cornelia saw them, let go of Caleb quickly but greeted them both with a friendly voice. "Hi Will, hello Harry."

Will gave an embarrassed smile. "Morning Cornelia, Professor Green."

Caleb looked uncomfortable, but said hello. "Good day miss Vandom, Mr. Potter."

"We'll be on our way now." Will said, opening the library door, and pulling a speechless Harry inside.

"Cornelia must really like Professor Green." Harry said awkwardly.

"She's always liked him." Will replied.

"They were childhood friends or something?" Harry asked.

"Something like that." Will said, grinning, and sitting down at a table.

"I'll be right back. I'm going to get a book." Harry said, and he walked off among the towering and endless bookshelves.

Will looked out of the window she was sitting next to, and gazed at the grassy hills, the tall mountains, the clear blue lake, and the yellow and orange trees, and thought how beautiful this place was. Will sighed and ran a hand through her short, flaming hair. 'Ever since the war with Phobos ended, the Guardians of the Veil haven't had much fighting to do. We've hardly ever had to transform anymore.'

Will looked down at her right palm. 'The Heart hasn't even so much as pulsed since I had the vision of Phobos and that snake guy.' Will was jerked out of her wondering by a thud.

Harry had come back and set a fair sized book titled 'Qudditch Though the Ages' on the table. He sat down and opened the book to a page. "You okay?" He asked, noticing her far off look.

"Yeah, I was just thinking…" Will replied.

Harry began to explain Qudditch; sounding excited and Will could tell this was something he loved, about the three chasers, the two beaters, the keeper, and the seeker and about the Quaffle, about the Snitch, and about the Bludgers.

Will hung on to his every word, very, very interested.

"You should try out tomorrow." Harry said, when he was done explaining.

"I don't think so." Will replied. "I'm not really a sports person. I mean, I swim a lot, but that's it. Maybe you should ask Elyon."

"I could ask her too. We need two chasers and two beaters." Harry said.

"I'm not that good at-" Will started.

"Come on. It's worth a try." Harry interrupted.

"I don't know if-"

"Will, it's a load of fun. I'm the seeker and team captain, Ron's keeper, and Katie Bell, you know Katie Bell, is a chaser."

Will was surprised, Harry didn't strike her as the jock type, as he was small and skinny for his age like Will was, but he was the Gryffindor Qudditch captain.

"Well… okay." Will sighed.

"Great! I'm sure you'll do fine." Harry said brightly.

"But I don't have a broom." Will added, hoping this would get her off the hook.

"Don't worry, you can use one of the school brooms until you can get your own." Harry replied.

'What have I gotten myself into?' Will thought. "So, does anyone play Qudditch outside of the school?"

"Of course! It's the biggest sport in the wizarding world." Harry answered.

And so Will listened, smiling, as Harry went on about the different Qudditch teams, famous players, and about the World Cup he had gone to two years ago.

* * *

"You should have heard him. He sound like a kid at Christmas." Will said.

Will, Cornelia, and Elyon were sitting under an oak tree by the lake where on one could see them, talking about what they thought of the school so far.

"If I didn't know better, I'd say Will Vandom had a crush on the famous Harry Potter." Elyon teased, grinning.

Will blushed a bright pink. "I do not!"

"Hey, what's up?" Hay Lin's voice called from behind the tree.

Cornelia, Elyon, and Will turned and smiled.

Taranee, Irma, and Hay Lin were walking toward them across the leaf-covered grass.

Taranee sat down next to Will, Hay Lin leaned against the oak tree, and Irma stood by the lake.

"Will, that's not a very nice thing to think about Elyon." Taranee said, absent mildly playing with her one of beaded braids.

"You know, sometimes I wish you couldn't read minds." Will replied.

Irma opened her mouth to ask what was going on, but a warning glance from Cornelia made her close her mouth without saying anything.

"So, did you guys hear about the Qudditch tryouts tomorrow?" Hay Lin asked, all smiles as usual.

"Yeah." Everyone replied in unison.

"Harry talked me into trying out for the Gryffindor team." Will groaned, running a hand over her face.

"I think I'll try out for chaser." Irma said, still staring at the lake.

"If only the seeker position was open, I'd try out for it." Hay Lin sighed. "I guess I'll just try for chaser."

"What are you trying out for, Will?" Taranee asked, lying down on her stomach.

"Chaser, I guess. Beater doesn't appeal to me." Will said. "Are the rest of you guys trying out?"

"Not me!" Taranee exclaimed.

"I don't think so. It's not really my thing." Cornelia replied, leaning against the same tree as Hay Lin.

"Same here." Elyon agreed.

"Hey Will, have you seen or heard anything about Phobos?" Irma asked suddenly, finally turning around.

Will shook her head. "Not a thing, the Heart's been dormant lately."

"That's just weird. Wouldn't he have tired to do something to us by now if he were free?" Cornelia said, leaning her head back against the tree.

"I don't know. Phobos doesn't strike when you expect him to." Elyon replied, frowning a little at the subject of her brother. "I wouldn't call Phobos predictable."

"I just wish we knew more about what we're up against." Will sighed.

"I have a feeling we'll find out sooner or later." Irma said. "But I don't think we'll find out the easy way."

"Let's hope your wrong, Irma." Will said.

"Unfortunately, we've hardly ever been wrong since we got our powers." Cornelia replied.

* * *

Will leaned against the Nimbus 1000 broomstick she was using for Qudditch tryouts.

Currently it was people who wanted to be Beaters who were trying out, and Will and the other students who wanted to tryout for Chaser, including Ginny Weasly, were standing around in a line.

Will winched as Jake West, a Gryffindor fourth year, was rammed in the stomach by a bludger.

Harry slapped a hand over his face with a groan. "Next."

Finally, Cody Larson, a Gryffindor second year, and Peter Keene, a Gryffindor fifth year, were chosen as the new beaters.

"Okay, Chaser tryouts are gonna start now! Ginny, you're up first!" Harry called.

Ginny walked forward, mounted her broom, and flew up into the air. She got the Quaffle past Ron seven out of thirteen times, and only dropped the Quaffle four times during her ten minutes.

"Great!" Harry said smiling, as Ginny landed on the field. "You're in!"

Ginny beamed at him. "Thank you Harry."

Harry called a few more names, and everyone did pretty badly, before Harry called, "Will! You're up!"

Will gulped, walked forward, mounted her broom, and took off. Being a Guardian, Will was used to flying, but this was even more incredible then that. The wind whipped her short red hair behind her, and her chocolate brown eyes lit up with happiness at the feeling of flight.

Harry tossed up the Quaffle to Will. "Okay, try and get the Quaffle past Ron!"

Will looked ahead of her at the fifty-foot high goal posts, which Ron was guarding. She smiled, and speed up toward the goals, the Quaffle tucked under her arm.

"You're a good flyer, I'll give you that much." Ron called.

"Why thank you, Ron." Will replied, coming to a halt.

"Oi! What'd are you stopping for, Will!" Ginny called.

Will smirked, and pulled into a dive.

Ron shook his head, and dove after her.

'Perfect.' Will thought. She pulled up sharply, whizzed past Ron, and threw the Quaffle through the highest goal.

"All right, Will!" Ginny cheered, punching a fist into the air, while Katie clapped.

"That was beginners luck." Ron said, folding his arms, and floating back up to the goal hoops.

"Oh, don't be such a sore loser, Ron!" Ginny called.

"Okay, try a few more times!" Harry called up.

Will was aided by Katie and Ginny a little the next few times, only dropping the Quaffle twice and scoring five out of ten times.

Harry mounted his Fire Bolt, and flew into the air so he could get a better view, and he liked what he saw. 'It's almost like she's done this before.' He thought. Of course, he didn't know she don't some things quite similar several times.

After another six minutes he called for everyone to go back to the ground, and they all descended slowly, Will raced over to Harry the moment her feet hit the ground.

"So, did I make it?" She asked breathlessly, but clearly exhilarated.

"Yeah. Welcome to the team." Harry said, holding out his hand to shake hers. "That was some really great flying."

Will beamed at him and shook his hand. "Thank you Harry." She let go of his hand, and picked up her bag at her feet. "I said I'd meet Elyon, Taranee, and Cornelia after tryouts and tell them how I did." Will started to walk off the field. "See you later, Harry! Thanks again!"

"Yeah! See you!" Harry called.

Will ran towards the oak tree by the lake, where they had deiced would meet after her try out, as it was on the other side of the lake, where no one could see them.

She found Cornelia and Elyon already sitting at the foot of the tree, giggling, as usual, Taranee stood leaning against the tree, while Hay Lin and Irma were sitting in the tree.

"What are you doing here? I thought you two had Quidditch tryouts." Will said to Irma and Hay Lin, coming to a stop.

"They changed the time to this morning." Hay Lin replied. "Irma and I both made the team!"

"That's great!" Will said. "I made the Gryffindor team! You're looking at one of the new chasers! Ginny Weasly's the other new one."

"I'm a chaser and Hay Lin's the seeker." Irma said.

"But I thought Ravenclaw already had a seeker." Will said, sitting down next to Cornelia.

"Cho Chang, yeah. Well, she's been playing so badly, that they kicked her off 'cause they knew they'd lose with her as seeker. I feel kinda sorry for her. She used be really good from what I've heard, and now she's been replaced by a new girl." Hay Lin replied.

"What do you know about Cho Chang?" Will asked, taking a caldroun cake that Cornelia had offered her. "I meet her once, and she seemed really sad."

"I know she used to be a really good Quidditch player, then she stated messing up in her sixth year. I also know she was dating that student who died two years ago. I think his name was Cedric Diggory." Cornelia answered.

Leave it to Cornelia, the queen of gossip, to know about Cho Chang. The name Cedric Diggory then fully registered in her mind. "How did he die?"

"There are two different stories about it. One is that he was killed by a Blast-Ended Skrewt during the final task of the Tri-Wizard tournament, the other is that he was murdered by someone named Lord Voldemort." Cornelia explained.

"According to Harry, Cedric was killed by Voldemort." Will said.

"That's the true one, it was proven last year." Cornelia replied. "Haven't you heard? Harry saw Voldemort rise from the dead, he saw Cedric be killed, and he only just got away himself."

"And last year, one of his followers killed some escaped prisoner named Sirius Black, who was in prison for killing thirteen people with one cruse." Elyon added.

"Oh! I just remembered something else about Cho Chang!" Taranee said.

"What?" Everyone asked in unison.

"She was dating Harry Potter last year, but they broke up." Taranee said. "I can't believe I knew something that you didn't, Cornelia!"

Cornelia frowned, but a smirk twitched at the corners of her mouth.

"She was dating… Harry?" Will repeated. 'No wonder she seemed so uncomfortable around him.' She thought, remembering that day at Kings Cross Station. 'But she was glaring at me. Could she want to get back together with him?'

**End Chapter Eleven**


	12. Halloween

A/N: Okay, before I used that GOD AWFUL song 'Do the Hippogriff", and thank god I realized how stupid that was.

I mean, I said the party in this story was a formal, who would play that song at a formal? So, I just decided to imagine a waltz, I thought of "Potter Waltz" from the Goblet of Fire soundtrack, but feel free to imagine any slow music you like.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own W.I.T.C.H. or Harry Potter.

**Chapter Twelve**

**Halloween**

"Happy Birthday Elyon!" A chorus of voices rang out in the Gryffindor girls' dormitory.

Elyon sat up in bed and grinned. "You guys remembered!"

"Of course, I've only been your best friend almost your whole life!" Cornelia said.

"You slept a little late, but don't worry there's still time to get breakfast before classes start. We didn't wake you sooner because we didn't want to wake Lavender or Pavrti, no matter how much they'd deserve it." Will said, clipping a barrette in her hair.

"Probably out with those Ravenclaw Qudditch players again." Elyon replied, pulling on her robes.

"We'll give you your presents at break." Cornelia said. "Hurry up and get dressed so we can go have breakfast. I know you like those lemon tarts as much as I do and don't want them to run out."

"We'll wait for you in the common room." Will added.

Cornelia and Will walked down to the common room and noticed there was something new on the notice board.

"Wear a costume to dinner tonight, semi formal. Girl students please wear skirts/dresses. No blood, guts, or extra eyes if you please. Singed Professor Dumbledore." Cornelia read.

"Great. I don't have anything nice to wear." Will groaned.

"We all do! We can go in our guardian forms!" Cornelia exclaimed.

Will looked around the room to make sure there was no one around. When she was sure she and Cornelia were alone, she hissed, "Are you crazy! We can't just waltz into the Great Hall dressed like that!"

"We could cover our wings! Irma's done it before! She went to a teen night club and nobody noticed!" Cornelia protested.

"Don't tell me you forgot what happened when she did that!" Will replied, putting a hand to her forehead.

"That wasn't my point." Cornelia said, frowning. "My point is we wear skirts in our guardian forms! It'd be so perfect! Come on Will!"

"It's just not a good idea!" Will exclaimed.

"You said yourself you don't have anything nice to wear!" Cornelia said.

"Cornelia-"

"Come on Will! No one will see us transform if we make sure no one's looking!"

"Oh… fine." Will sighed.

"Yes!" Cornelia said. "I promise, it'll work out!"

'What have I gotten myself into?' Will thought.

"Okay, girls. Let's go." Elyon said, walking down the girl's staircase.

The girl's walked down to the Great Hall, sat down together at the Gryffindor table, and ate their breakfast.

"So did you hear about the costume party tonight?" Cornelia asked Elyon.

"No, I didn't." Elyon replied, looking at her curiously.

"We're supposed to dress in something nice. Something with a skirt or a dress." Will said dully.

"Great. I have the perfect dress!" Elyon said beaming. "What about you guys?"

Cornelia leaned to Elyon so that only she could hear. "We're going in our guardian forms."

"Don't you think you'll stand out with wings?" Elyon whispered, giggling a little.

"We're going to cover them." Cornelia whispered back.

"I don't mean to interrupt, but our first class starts in ten minutes." Will said, glancing at her watch.

"What do we have first?" Elyon asked.

"History of Magic." Will replied.

Cornelia groaned, but stood up and pulled her green school bag over her shoulder. "We may as well get going. It doesn't matter if we're late though, Professor Bins is always too wrapped up in the lesson to care."

So, the girls left the Great Hall arrived at class twenty minutes late, and sat down next to each other going unnoticed by everyone except Hermione, who looked at them and shook her head.

Will stared out the only window in the room and let her mind wander to Candracar. 'I wonder what the oracle thinks about us coming here. I hope we're not causing them any problems.'

After Professor Bins dismissed class, there was a mad dash to get out of the classroom before he gave them more homework.

But after Cornelia told Will they had Divination next, Will half wanted to run back into Professor Bins' classroom and hide under a desk.

Never the less, Will forced herself to walk up to the seventh floor with Cornelia and Elyon, climb up the ladder into Professor Trelawney's tower and sit down on a pouf at a table in the dark smoky room.

Will frowned when she saw the crystal ball in the middle of the table. 'Great, more crystal gazing. I hate that.'

Harry joined her two minutes later, sat down, but didn't flash Will one of his usual smiles. "Hi Will." He sighed.

"You hate this as much as I do, huh?" Will said, resting her chin in her hands.

"Yep." Harry replied, kicking his bag under the table.

The lesson began and all the students began crystal gazing, or attempted to crystal gaze.

Harry stared into the milky white ball first and saw nothing, which didn't add to his already dull mood.

Will also saw nothing. 'Big surprise.' She thought as she finally gave up.

"You know, making star charts is much more fun." Harry said dully.

Will was about to ask why, when Elyon shrieked, "I see someone!"

All heads in the room snapped towards Elyon and Cornelia's table.

Cornelia was staring at her friend with wide blue eyes, almost in disbelief.

"What do you see, my dear? Come, let us know." Professor Trelawney said in that dreamy voice Will hated so much.

"A man is walking down a street, and he's thin, has a white, stern, but handsome face, and he's got matted long black hair. Oh, he's saying something." Elyon explained.

"What, my dear, what?" Professor Trelawney asked, looking extremely impressed.

"Harry Potter. I must find Harry." Elyon replied, looking up at Harry with ice blue eyes as wide as Cornelia's.

Everyone looked Harry's way now.

"Oh! Miss Elyon! You have seen our dear Harry's murderer!" Professor Trelawney screeched.

Ron stood up, clearly having had enough of Trelawney's death predictions. "You've been predicting Harry's death every year for three years! And is he dead? No! Sure, he's had some close calls, but who hasn't?"

Will looked over at Elyon and Cornelia who looked back and smirked. Will smirked too, she couldn't help it. The guardians and Elyon had certainly had had close calls with death and Will had told Cornelia in June that she was sometimes amazed to have even lived to be sixteen and Cornelia had laughed and agreed full heartedly.

"But this time I'm sure of it!" Professor Trelawney cried.

"Oh, Harry, be very careful." Lavender said, putting her hands to her mouth.

"But if it's been seen there's no way around it!" Pavarti moaned.

"Oh shut up! Harry's not going to die!" Will snapped.

"Your not a seer! How would you know!" Lavender said.

"You aren't exactly a seer yourself!" Will spat. She was dying to add 'I've seen more than you have' but didn't.

"Girls! Girls, that's enough. Everyone back to work!" Professor Trelawney cried, now furious.

Everyone went back to work, and Will glared at the back of Lavender's head.

"Will?" Harry said.

Will turned to look at him. "What?"

"Thanks."

Will couldn't help but smile. "No problem."

* * *

Will sat beside Elyon under the oak tree by the lake, while Cornelia was sitting up in the tree, tapping her fingers impatiently on the branch she was sitting on. "Where are they?"

"Chill out Cornelia. They said they'd be here." Will replied.

They were waiting for Irma, Taranee, and Hay Lin so they could give Elyon her presents.

Cornelia sighed. "You know, I like it here and all, but that Trelawney woman and Snape give me the creeps."

"Tell me about it." Elyon agreed, pretending to shiver.

"Yeah, Snape is pretty creepy." Will said. "I wonder what his problem is."

"Who cares?" Elyon said idly with her eyes closed.

"I'm coming down now." Cornelia said.

"Cornelia, don't-" Will started.

Too late.

The branch Cornelia was sitting on lowered toward the ground, stopping at about three feet from the ground.

Cornelia hopped off the branch, bowed to the tree, raised one hand, and the tree branch went back to its normal height above the ground.

"Cornelia! Do you know what'll happen if someone saw that?" Will hissed.

"Yeah. They'll tell everyone, no one will believe them and people'll call them crazy the rest of the school year." Cornelia replied, sitting down on the other side of Elyon.

"…Fine, you've got a point there." Will said.

Cornelia just gave Will an understanding smile.

"Hey! Here they come!" Elyon said, sitting up straight.

Irma, Taranee, and Hay Lin were walking toward the across the grass, carrying brightly colored packages.

"Sorry we're late. We stayed after class to help Professor Sprout clean up." Taranee said, sitting in her usual spot next to Will. "Justin got Manticula sap all over everything."

"No problem." Will said, inwardly grossed out, remembering how sticky and slimy the sap was from when Pansy Parkinson had purposely gotten it on her a few weeks ago.

"So, who's should I open first?" Elyon asked, looking at all the presents, which had been stacked up. Elyon ended up taking Hay Lin's present, which was wrapped in sliver paper and tied with gold ribbons, and opened it. "Oh my gosh!"

Inside was a peasant shirt made with soft sky blue fabric and had red and purple flowers embroidered around the neck.

"Hay Lin it's great!" Elyon cried happily.

"I made it just for you." Hay Lin replied.

"You made that?" Cornelia asked, eyeing the shirt with impressed eyes.

"Yep. Pretty good huh?" Hay Lin said, beaming widely.

"Taranee, can I open yours next?" Elyon asked.

"Sure." Taranee handed Elyon a package wrapped in stripped purple and orange paper.

Elyon open the box and pulled out a photo album. She opened it and looked through it. "These are pictures of Meridian."

"Yeah. I took them this summer, but I had to hide them from my parents and Peter. I brought them along album because I wanted to put them in an album, which I did, but I figured they'd be off with you. Now you'll have something to remind you of home." Taranee explained.

Elyon was going through them, taking a good look at one photo before going on to the next one. "There's the church, Vathek's old house, the palace, the gardens, the park, and so much more."

"I thought you'd like them." Taranee said.

"Taranee, when did you take those?" Will asked.

"I may have found an open portal in June, and I may have gone through and taken a few photos." Taranee said sheepishly.

"This wouldn't happen to be the same portal we closed on my birthday, would it?" Hay Lin asked, pursing her lips. (A/N: For those of you who don't know, Hay Lin's birthday in on June 4th.)

"Yeah." Taranee squeaked.

Will slapped a hand to her forehead. "Oh Taranee…"

"Can we please get back to what we were doing?" Cornelia asked grumpily, lying on her stomach.

"Okay." Will sighed. "Just tell us next time you find a portal, okay?"

Taranee nodded. "Sorry Will."

"Mine next!" Irma yelled, making Cornelia jump.

Irma's gift was a small box covered in red paper and green ribbons. "It doesn't look too Christmassy, does it?" Irma asked.

Elyon laughed and shook her head. She opened the box and pulled out what looked like a round glass charm on a necklace chain. "Wow! It looks like a bubble!"

"Well, that's what it is. I froze a bubble from my bubble bath last night. You don't have to worry about it breaking. I made it so that it'll never shatter." Irma replied.

"Thanks a bunch Irma. It's beautiful." Elyon said.

"You can open mine now, if you want." Will said.

Will's present was wrapped in shinny yellow paper with a blue bow set in one corner.

Elyon opened it.

Inside was a brand new sketching pad with some different colored pens.

"Cool! Thanks Will!" Elyon exclaimed.

"You're welcome." Will replied.

"Open mine now!" Cornelia cried, handing it to Elyon excitedly.

Cornelia's gift was wrapped in green paper with rainbow colored ribbon tied around it.

Elyon opened it and a smile spread across her face.

Cornelia's present was a silver picture frame with a picture of Elyon and Cornelia standing in front of the royal palace in Meridian.

Cornelia was in her guardian form, and Elyon was wearing sky blue royal robes with the Crown of Light perched in her straw colored hair.

Will remembered when that picture had been taken. It had been right after they had won the war against Phobos, and left him to be guarded by the Oracle. Taranee had brought her camera, and Elyon insisted that Taranee take a picture of her and Cornelia together in front of the palace.

Unfortunately, they never got a chance to give Elyon a copy of the picture, and had eventually forgotten about it all together.

"Oh thank you! I don't have any pictures of us together!" Elyon cried.

"I know. That's why I gave it to you." Cornelia replied. "But now you'll have something to remind you have me when you go back home for the summer."

"Hey, what are you guys going as to the party tonight?" Irma asked randomly.

"Will and I are going in our guardian forms." Cornelia replied.

"And I'm going in my best royal robes." Elyon added happily.

"Hey! We should all go in out guardian forms!" Hay Lin exclaimed.

"I don't know if that's a good idea." Taranee said, frowning.

"Finally! Someone who agrees with me!" Will cried, throwing her hands up.

"Oh come on, we went over this already." Cornelia said. "Do we have anything else to wear to the party?"

"No." Will said.

"And wouldn't it be a whole lot easier just to transform ourselves when no one's looking?" Cornelia questioned, knowing what the answer would be.

"Yes." Will sighed.

"And would it really be that hard to hide our wings?" Cornelia asked.

"No."

"Then what's the big problem?"

"Nothing."

"Um, Will? I don't think-" Taranee started.

"Cornelia's right. It won't be a big deal." Will sighed.

"Great! Let's meet in the entrance hall at seven o'clock!" Irma said.

"Guys? There's something I forgot to tell you about Divination today." Elyon said, changing the subject entirely.

"What happen in that old bat's class?" Irma asked.

"Elyon saw somebody who Trelawney says is going to kill Harry." Cornelia replied, rolling her eyes.

Hay Lin and Irma snorted.

"I really did see someone! I know where he was, and he looked familiar." Elyon said.

"Where was he then?" Irma asked.

"Meridian."

There was silence for a while.

"You said he looked familiar?" Will asked.

"Yeah, but I don't know who he was. I think I saw his picture in a book before." Elyon said. "Urgh, I wish I could remember!"

"A book here on earth or in Meridian?" Taranee asked.

"Here, right here in Hogwarts." Elyon answered, pointing over at the castle. "I think he was born here in the wizarding world."

"But then why would he be in Meridian?" Cornelia asked.

"Your guess is as good as mine." Elyon said with a shrug.

They all sat in silence for a few minutes, before the bell rang, and the girls headed off to their next class.

* * *

"Okay, he coast is clear." Elyon whispered.

Cornelia, Will, and Elyon crept across the second floor corridor and into Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. They all got inside and shut the door.

"Myrtle! Are you here!" Cornelia called, her voice echoing in the small room.

Thankfully, there was no answer.

"She's probably up in the boy's bathroom on the fifth floor." Elyon whispered to Will.

Will giggled, remembering the rumors that Myrtle liked to spy on the boys. She _was _dead, and therefore wouldn't ever have a boyfriend or anything Will supposed.

"All right, I think it's safe to transform." Cornelia said.

"Ready?" Will asked, looking between her two friends.

"Yeah." They replied in unison.

All three girls closed their eyes and let their transformation begin.

Will felt her arms get longer, her legs lengthen, and her face change as warm magic surged though her body. She could almost taste the magic the Heart was emitting. Suddenly, the warm stopped, and Will opened her eyes.

Cornelia was standing about three feet away from Will, tall and beautiful in her guardian uniform.

Elyon was almost right next to Cornelia. She seemed to be glowing in her sky blue and white lace trimmed dress.

Will looked at herself in a mirror. 'Maybe this wasn't such a good idea…'

Cornelia picked up a green-blue shawl by her feet, which she must have dropped when she transformed, and tossed it to Will. "Hay Lin made these to cover our wings. A blue one for you and a pink one for me."

It was like a shawl except that the fabric only hung down on one side.

Will tied it around her neck so that it covered her wings, and Cornelia did the same.

"Shall we go?" Elyon asked.

"Yeah, it's almost seven." Cornelia said, heading for the door.

The three girls left the bathroom and hurried down to the ground floor.

When they got there, they found the rest of the school standing in the entrance hall, dressed in costumes that made the scene comical, considering how many different ones there were.

"Will? Is that you?" A voice behind Will asked.

Will turned around and felt that feeling of butterflies in her stomach. "Hi Harry."

Harry was dressed in green dress robes, she could tell someone had made an attempt to tame his wild hair, but that was it really.

"What are you supposed to be?" Will asked.

"I dunno. These are left over from my four year of school here, so I just threw them on." Harry replied with a shrug. "Ron and Hermione have more clothes than I do so I think they put together better costumes than I did."

Will looked over her shoulder.

Ron was in clothes that made him look like a gentleman from the 1700's. He looked very nice in the clothes, Will had to admit.

Standing next to him was Hermione, dressed in a pink dress that had purple ribbons tied around the waist, white slippers, and a crown of daises in her long hair, which was straight, much to Will's surprise.

"You look nice." Harry said.

"Thanks." Will replied, turning her attention to him.

"But you also look… different." Harry added scanning her to try and figure out what it was.

"Is the costume that bad?" Will asked jokingly.

"Not at all!" Harry said quickly. "But how did you get your face to look more mature?"

"The magic of make-up." Will answered, grinning.

"I swear you look taller too." Harry said, still not entirely believing her.

"It's the boots." Will replied.

"Cornelia and Elyon's costumes look nice too." Harry said.

Will was about to respond, when a voice called out, "Looks like Potter's got himself a girlfriend! It's the red head mudblood!"

"Just ignore him." Harry growled, glaring at the back of Malfoy's head.

If only Elyon had heard him. In six strides she crossed the room, spun Malfoy around to face her, and-

SLAP!

Malfoy stumbled backwards because of the force of Elyon's slap across his face.

"Don't you dare say anything like that about Will again! She's got more magic in one finger than you do in your scrawny body!" Elyon shouted. "She sure as hell is a better person!"

And with that, she stormed through the doors of the great hall, which had just opened.

Cornelia looked over at Will. "Meet up with Irma and the others. I'm going after Elyon." Cornelia hurried into the great hall after Elyon.

"What was all that about?" Harry asked confused.

"I dunno." Will replied, also confused.

"Hey Will!"

Will spun around.

Irma, Hay Lin, and Taranee were walking toward Will, all three in their guardian forms, with Hay Lin's shawls draped over their shoulders to cover their wings.

"I'll see you later Harry." Will said, walking away in Irma, Taranee, and Hay Lin's direction.

"What were you talking to Harry about?" Irma asked, grinning.

"Normal stuff." Will said.

"Suuure." Irma said.

"Shut up and let's go." Will muttered, shoving Irma towards the hall.

The girls walked into the great hall, which was decorated with pumpkins hanging from the ceiling and live bats flying around.

Irma, Hay Lin, and Taranee made their way to the Ravenclaw table, and Will found Elyon and Cornelia and sat down with them.

Dumbledore stood and the noise that had been filling the hall died.

"After tonight's dinner, we will be having a dance of sorts. The band will be here within the hour. But for now, enjoy your dinner." Dumbledore said. He clapped his hands and the table filled with creepy looking foods, most of it candy.

Cornelia, Will, and Elyon chatted, laughed and ate until they couldn't eat anymore and just sat talking.

After an hour, Dumbledore asked the students to stand, which they did, and the tables and benches folded themselves up and lined up against the walls.

"I would like the introduce The Weird Sisters who will be playing for you tonight." Dumbledore said.

A bunch of people with different shades of neon hair who were carrying instruments walked into the front of the great hall and began to set up, including instruments Will have never dreamed of seeing in a rock band.

"Hey girls." A voice said.

Will, Elyon, and Cornelia turned and saw Caleb who not dressed up, but was wearing his normal deep red robes that he wore during classes.

"Why aren't you up at the teachers table?" Elyon asked.

"I was talking to Vathek." Caleb replied.

"How?" Will asked, surprised.

"I'll tell you later, but I check up on him every once in a while to make sure things are going okay in Meridian." Caleb whispered.

"There's another reason too though, right?" Elyon said, smirking with a raised eyebrow.

Caleb blushed. "Okay, I wanted to come to the party."

Cornelia smiled. "You did, did you?" She said in a clearly flirty voice.

"Hey, even a teacher needs to have some fun." Caleb replied, grinning at his girlfriend.

"I sure hope you don't have to dance with someone." Will muttered.

"It _is _a formal Will, that usually means dance partners." Elyon said.

And, much to Will's horror, a man with shocking green hair from the band, who had finished setting up (they were probably so quick owning to the fact that they had used magic), announced into a floating microphone that everyone needed a dance partner.

Will groaned, but scrambled toward the first person she thought of.

Harry turned around when Will tapped him on the shoulder. "Will, would you like to dance?"

Will smiled. "I was about to ask you the same thing." Will looked around at everyone else quickly.

Ron and Hermione were standing next to each other, smiling shyly at each other, which told Will they were dancing partners.

Taranee was speaking to Dean Thomas, batting her eyelashes at him from behind her glasses, while he smiled at her.

Irma was with Roger Davies, the Ravenclaw Quidditch captain, who was flirting openly with Irma, who seemed to be flirting right back.

Hay Lin was standing with a tall blonde Ravenclaw seventh year, who was also on the Quidditch team.

Elyon was with Seamus Finnagin, who seemed to have had his sights set on Hay Lin, but didn't seem upset about that Elyon was his dance partner.

Cornelia was standing with Caleb (of course), and Caleb had an arm around her waist and was glaring at a Gryffindor fourth year who was eyeing Cornelia with disappointed eyes.

Will noticed Cho Chang staring at her and Harry from across the room, before she disappeared into the crowd.

'She wanted to dance with Harry.' Will thought. She felt Harry's hand slip into hers, and she turned to him.

"I'm afraid I'm not very good at dancing." Harry said awkwardly.

"I'm not either." Will replied.

The music began and all the dancers started moving, swirling, gliding across the floor.

"You are a good dancer." Harry said, spinning Will in a circle.

"You're good too." Will replied, surprised by her own smooth steps. 'It must be my guardians powers.'

They stepped faster when the music went faster, glided slowly when the music slowed, and Will never took her eyes from Harry's.

The songs changed, and still they danced.

Will beamed the entire night, and Harry smiled right back.

* * *

"That was the most fun I've had since Irma's fifteenth birthday party!" Cornelia said, sitting down on her bed.

"Seamus kept stepping on my feet, but it was fun." Elyon agreed, setting up the picture of her and Cornelia on her bedside table.

It was an hour after the party had ended, and Will and Cornelia had changed out of their guardian forms and into their pajama's, and Elyon had changed out of her royal robes and into her pajama's.

"You aren't going to put that there, are you?" Will asked. "It's you in your robes and Cornelia in her guardian form in front of the palace."

"Oh fine." Elyon sighed. She waved a hand at the picture and with a glitter of white magic, the scene of the palace changed into that of a mall, and Elyon and Cornelia were changed into normal muggle clothes.

Will yawned. "I think we should go to bed. It's past midnight."

Cornelia nodded and got under the scarlet blankets of her four-poster bed.

Elyon and Will got in their beds just as Hermione came into the dorm.

"That was a magical night, wasn't it?" Hermione sighed.

Will smiled. "Yeah, it sure was."

**End Chapter Twelve**


	13. A Secret Revealed

**Disclaimer: **I do not own W.i.t.c.h. or Harry Potter.

**Chapter Thirteen**

**A Secret Revealed**

A Hogsmeade trip was planned for the first Saturday in November, much to the delight of all the students above third year.

Will and the others looked forward to it, as they had never been to Hogsmeade before, but they still had a few days to wait before the trip.

In the meantime, everyone's homework was pilling up, Snape was getting meaner everyday, Trelawney was now predicting Will's death, as well as Harry's, and Quidditch practice was becoming grueling.

One windy autumn day, two days before the Hogsmeade trip, the Gryffindor Quidditch team was standing out on the pitch, waiting for Harry.

Will leaned sleepily against her Nimbus 1000 that Madame Hooch said she could keep. It was a good broom, aside from the fact that it tended to lean to the left when she dove.

"What do you think he's doing?" Katie asked, sitting cross-legged on the ground. "He said he's be here at two o'clock and it's 2:10 now."

"I'm sure he has a reason." Will sighed, blowing a lock of red hair out of her face.

"And to think I could have been doing my History of Magic homework." Ginny said grumpily, playing with her own red hair.

"Here he comes!" Ron exclaimed.

Harry was indeed running across the lawn towards the bored team. "Sorry guys." He panted, coming to a stop. "I was speaking the Madam Hooch."

Will, Ginny and Katie all frowned and raised an eyebrow. "That usually isn't good this close to a game." Ginny stated.

"It isn't. I just found out that we're taking on Slytherin at the end of this month." Harry continued.

Everyone groaned, Katie falling back onto the ground, clapping a hand to her forehead.

"Not Slytherin!" Will said.

"I don't like it anymore than you guys do, but we've got a damn good team. We're a little rough around the edges, since we've got some new team members and we're just getting to know each other-" Harry stared.

"You and Will seem to know each other pretty well." Peter Keene said, winking.

Harry frowned. "You want to play this upcoming game, or should I find a better behaved beater?"

'If only Cornelia were here to make a cactus grow up right under him or Irma to make it rain on him.' Will thought, glaring at Peter.

"All right, that's enough. Let's start practice, everyone in the air." Harry said.

Will mounted her broom and took off, followed by Ginny and Katie.

* * *

Cornelia, Elyon, and Will stood by the open gate out of Hogwarts, waiting for the rest of their normal party of six, while students were already hurrying out of the gate and down to the village.

After a moment, Irma, Taranee, and Hay Lin ran up to them. They greeted each other and walked trough the gate and down the hill towards the village.

"Is Caleb meeting us?" Hay Lin asked.

"No, he went to meet with Vathek in Meridian." Elyon answered.

"All right! Girls day out!" Irma cried with a whoop.

"Let's go to the candy store first!" Hay Lin said, brown eyes twinkling.

"No way, the joke shop!" Taranee replied.

"I say the Shrieking Shack!" Elyon exclaimed, grinning broadly.

"Why don't we just split up?" Will suggested. "Let's meet in the Three Broomsticks at four 'o clock."

"Okay, that's three hours away." Cornelia said, looking at her watch. "Come on Elyon, I'll go with you to the Shrieking Shack."

The two blondes told the others they'd see them later, and walked off towards the Shrieking Shack.

"We're off to the candy shop." Irma said, linking arms with Hay Lin and skipping off.

"Come on, let's go to the joke shop." Will said to Taranee, and the two girls walked off.

* * *

"It doesn't look haunted to me." Cornelia said, turning her head to the side.

Elyon nodded. "Maybe not, but I still wouldn't want to live there."

Cornelia folded her arms. "I wonder why it's there."

"I dunno." Elyon replied with a shrug. "…Hey Cornelia, do you want to come back to school here next year?"

"I think so. I'm pretty sure Will and the others will want to." Cornelia answered. "And I may as well come back if they are."

"I want to come back next year, but I've got responsibilities back home." Elyon sighed, leaning against the fence in front of them.

"I'm sure you can work something out. Maybe Vathek can keep things in line while your gone, that's what he's doing now." Cornelia said, putting a hand on her friend's shoulder.

"I-" Elyon started, but she was cut off when they heard lots of screaming.

Both girls spun around to look at the village.

"What is that!" Elyon exclaimed, pointing up at an eerie green skull thing floating over the village.

"I don't know, but it can't be good!" Cornelia cried, her eyes widening. "Come on, the other might be in trouble!"

The two girls sprinted towards the village as fast as they could, hoping they weren't down a few guardians.

* * *

"Irma! Where are you!" Hay Lin screamed, fighting against the crowd. "Irma!"

In the rush that had happened after that skull thing had appeared, the two friends had been separated and Hay Lin darted around in the crowd, looking for Irma.

Out of the chaos, someone grabbed her hand. "Hay Lin!"

Hay Lin turned. "Seamus!"

"We've got to get out of here!" He yelled, coming to stand next to her.

"I can't find Irma! I won't leave without her!" Hay Lin shouted hysterically.

Suddenly, the candy store Hay Lin had been inside with Irma caught on fire, sending even more people into the streets looking for cover.

"Irma!" Hay Lin shrieked, trying to pull away from Seamus, but Seamus, being stronger than her, pulled her towards the castle. "No! Irma!"

Seamus pulled her to him so that he had one arm around her small body, and walked with the screaming crowd away from the village.

Tears spilled from Hay Lin's eyes, but she stopped fight Seamus and went with him willingly.

* * *

Taranee, Will, Harry, Ron and Hermione ran from the village as fast as their legs would carry them, robes flapping behind them.

"Where's Ginny!" Ron yelled, looking in every direction in hopes of finding his sister.

"I'm sure she's fine! She can take care of herself!" Hermione replied, giving his shoulder a squeeze.

Will also looked around in the crowd, for any sign of the others.

Taranee must have noticed this, because she said, "They're fine Will. We've been in worse spots before."

Will nodded, but wasn't so sure. 'I hope they really are okay.'

* * *

Cornelia made a door fly off it's hinges and hit a man in a black robes and a mask. "Leave her alone!" Cornelia was protecting a seven-year-old girl who was hiding behind Cornelia, while Elyon had gone to find the girl's brother.

"Take this!" Cornelia cried, levitating a chunk of earth and making it fall on another masked man.

The little girl screamed as more even more men in masks moved towards them.

Cornelia picked up the small girl, threw one last large chunk of earth at a man to block his path, and ran off.

"Let her go! The Dark Lord wants that girl alive!" One man ordered. 'So, it looks like we have found the guardian of earth.' Lucius Malfoy smirked. "Our master will be pleased."

Meanwhile, having found her way out of the village, Cornelia had climbed a hill where other students had run. Cornelia caught her breath and looked over the groups of students.

Cho Chang and her group of Ravenclaw friends were pale and shaking.

A bunch of first years from different houses were crying while a Hufflepuff seventh year tried to calm them down.

Draco Malfoy was leaning against a tree with his arms folded, looking out over the town with worried eyes and a frown.

'He can't really be worried about the other students, can he?' Cornelia thought. Cornelia heard a sob, and turned to see Hay Lin crying in Seamus Finnegan's arms.

Seamus gently rubbed Hay Lin's back and gazed over the town, which had become quiet. "It looks like it's safe now."

Cornelia shook her head. "No, they're not all gone yet."

"How do you know that?" A Hufflepuff girl asked.

"I just do." Cornelia answered, rubbing the little girl's back while she clung to Cornelia's neck.

"Cornelia!"

* * *

Cornelia turned. "Elyon! Thank god!"

Elyon was carrying a five-year-old boy, and she was with Ginny and-

"Irma!" Hay Lin cried, breaking out of Seamus's arms, and running to her friend.

Cornelia sighed. 'We know four of six of us are safe. I sure hope Will and Taranee didn't have a run in with one of those capped creeps.'

Elyon looked over at Draco who had been staring at her. "Were you worried about me?"

Draco looked away and frowned. "No!"

Elyon smiled. "Well, thanks for your concern."

Draco turned away, and muttered something under his breath.

Cornelia smirked. 'So maybe cold, and cruel over there does have a heart.'

* * *

"I don't know how to thank you girls." The mother of the boy and girl Cornelia and Elyon had saved said, while she held the hands of her children.

"You don't have to thank us, we just couldn't leave them." Elyon replied smiling.

"I'm just glad we found you, ma'am." Cornelia said.

"Would you like to come in for some tea?" The woman offered.

"No thank you. We have to look for two of our friends before we get back to school." Cornelia replied politely.

"Oh, well I hope you find them." The woman said.

"Thanks again ma'ams!" The girl said, while the little boy smiled shyly.

Elyon and Cornelia smiled at the little girl and boy, said goodbye, and walked off into town.

"I wonder if Irma and Hay Lin will have better luck finding them at school." Cornelia said.

"One of us will find them. Will and Taranee know how to take care of themselves." Elyon replied.

"You're right. I'm sure they're fine." Cornelia said. "I wonder what that skull thing was and what it means."

Elyon shrugged. "We'll ask someone back at the castle."

* * *

"I'm extremely tired." Cornelia yawned, climbing through the portrait hole after Elyon.

"There you guys are." A voice said. "All the students were sent to their common rooms half an hour ago."

"Will!" Elyon and Cornelia exclaimed.

Will was sitting between Harry and Hermione on one of the scarlet couches.

"Hay Lin and Irma said you were okay." Will said.

"Where's Taranee?" Cornelia asked, sitting in an armchair across from the couch Will was sitting in.

"In the Ravenclaw common room with Irma and Hay Lin." Will answered.

"We were looking for you in the village." Elyon said, choosing to sit on the floor. "Man, what a day. I hope all Hogsmeade trips aren't like that."

"They're not, they're almost always fun and enjoyable." Harry replied, shaking his head.

"What was going on anyway?" Cornelia asked, rubbing her hands together anxiously.

"Death Eaters attacked the village." Hermione said grimly.

"What are Death Eaters?" Elyon asked.

"They're you-know-who's followers." Ginny answered from her place on with floor with Ron by the fireplace.

Cornelia and Elyon's eye widened. They may not have known a lot about the wizarding world, but they knew about Voldemort and that people were afraid to say his name.

None of the guardians or Elyon understood it, really. No one in Meridian called Phobos you-know-who or feared to say his name even though he was pure evil.

"At least everyone's safe." Will said.

"For now, anyway." Cornelia muttered.

* * *

"My lord, we have found the guardian of earth." Lucius Malfoy said, bending on his knees in front of his master.

"That's very good, but I need all five guardians and the girl Queen." Voldemort replied.

"We will find them, my lord." Lucius said. "I don't suppose Lord Phobos knows the names of the girls we're looking for."

"No, I asked him. He told me they had never been properly introduced." Voldemort sighed. "A pity…"

"I see. Where is Lord Phobos, if I may ask?"

"He took some men to go free a follower of his. Unlike when we freed him, he will have to attack, and the rescue will not be quiet. He said this follower would be very helpful to us. Someone by the name of Lord Cedric." Voldemort answered.

**End Chapter Thirteen**

A/N: Just another rewritten chapter.


	14. The First Match

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter or W.i.t.c.h.

**Chapter Fourteen**

**The First Match**

Will was very nervous, as the day of the first Quidditch match of the year loomed closer and closer.

Harry now had the team meeting four times a week for practice. "We'll never beat Slytherin if we don't get better, even if we are already really good." Harry said one Quidditch practice

"You're starting to sound like Oliver." Katie said, from where she was sitting on the ground.

Will wasn't listening. Her right palm had started burning and was keeping her attention.

The Heart was acting up again.

'What is the world is going on now?' Will thought, keeping her fist closed so the Heart couldn't appear in front of everyone.

"You okay Will?" Ginny asked, noticing Will was wincing and had her right hand clamped tightly around her broom.

Suddenly the burning stopped.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Will lied.

"Okay, we'll meet again tomorrow." Harry said.

"And then the pain just stopped. It only last about twenty seconds." Will said.

All six friends were sitting under the oak tree, which Irma was calling theirs, by the lake.

"Weird thing have been happening all month." Cornelia replied, playing with her long golden hair. "Death Eaters attack the village, Elyon sees some strange man walking around the streets of Meridian, and on top of all that, Phobos escaped from the Oracle."

"This is defiantly mega weird. Since Phobos teamed up with someone, I'm sure things are gonna get weirder." Taranee said.

"We'll just have to wait, watch, and take on whatever comes our way." Elyon replied.

"Just relax Will. This stuff's right up our alley. We must have saved the world twice a week when were only just becoming teens." Irma said from here place sprawled out on the grass.

"Besides, you're Quidditch match is in two days. You should focus on that." Hay Lin added, hanging upside down from a tree branch with her long pigtails brushing the ground.

Will sighed. "I guess you're right."

* * *

"I'll see you later, there's someone I have to talk to." Hay Lin told Irma and Taranee as they left their afternoon Charms class the next day.

"But we've got a five page essay on beauty charms due tomorrow, and I think we should get to the library now." Taranee replied.

"Don't worry. Charms is my best subject, remember?" Hay Lin said grinning.

"Okay then. See you at dinner." Irma replied.

Irma and Taranee headed towards the library, and Hay Lin hurried down the stairs to get to the courtyard.

Hay Lin had to ask around before she found Seamus sitting under a tree in the courtyard. Hay Lin blushed a little, then took a deep breath and walked over to him. "Hi Seamus." She said.

He looked up from his own Charms homework. "Oh, hello Hay Lin."

"Umm… could we talk for a minute or two if you're not too busy?" Hay Lin asked.

"Sure thing." Seamus replied, setting his stuff down and standing up.

"I never got to thank you for what you did last week." Hay Lin said, hands behind her back. "You probably saved my life. I just thought that Irma was in danger or hurt, and I couldn't stand the thought of leaving her, but I could have been killed if I had stayed."

"Well, I couldn't just leave you there. You're a classmate." Seamus replied.

"Just a classmate?" Hay Lin asked, her eyes twinkling.

Seamus blushed. "Well, friends maybe?"

"Friends." Hay Lin replied, smiling.

"Okay then." Seamus said.

Hay Lin giggled.

"What?" Seamus asked.

"Nothing. Just that Irma teased me for days after she saw me crying in your arms." Hay Lin answered, still giggling.

"Errr…I mean I couldn't just let you cry like that and-"

Hay Lin gave Seamus a quick hug, and then skipped away. "Gotta go! I said I'd meet Will! Seeya at the Quidditch game tomorrow!"

Seamus just stood there staring after her for a moment. Finally, with a small smile, he slung his bag over his shoulder and left the courtyard.

* * *

"I don't think I can do this." Will said, pulling on her scarlet Quidditch robes with trembling hands.

"Don't worry. You'll do fine." Katie replied, pulling her long blonde hair into a ponytail.

"I don't know. I'm afraid I'll mess up and get kicked off the team." Will said.

"Come on Will, everyone is nervous before their first game. Harry was, and he not only won, but he proved he is the best Seeker the school's had since my brother Charlie, and Oliver Wood was nervous before his first game too." Ginny said, lacing her boots up.

"What happened at Oliver's first Quidditch match?" Will asked, clipping a pin in her hair to keep it out of her face.

Ginny and Katie looked at each other as if asking the other one to say something. "You don't want to know." They finally said in unison.

Will sighed. "Great, now I feel loads better."

"Hey girls! Are you ready yet?" Peter's voice said outside the locker room.

"If not, we'll come in and make sure you hurry- OUCH! What'd you do that for?" Cody's voice yelped.

It sounded like Peter had hit Cody on the head with a book or a large thick object.

"Don't be such a prat, Cody! What do you think this is! Do you want me to tell McGonagall!" Peter's voice snapped.

All three girls laughed, then picked up their brooms and walked into the next room for game play instructions from Harry.

A minute later, the girls were joined by Ron, who looked like he could take on a dragon because he looked fierce, Cody, who was rubbing his head, Peter, who was glaring at Cody, and Harry, who had a look of determination his face.

"Okay guys, to be honest, I don't really have a game plan." Harry admitted.

Will didn't know whether to groan or cheer.

"So just go out there and do your best. I know you are excellent Quidditch players, and with all of the talent we have put together, we can go all the way to the Quidditch cup and win it!" Harry said.

"Right-o mate!" Ron cheered.

Everyone except Will clapped, she just stared at the ground.

"We actually have five minutes until game start, so use the time wisely." Harry said.

Everyone poured out of the room, shouting and cheering.

Will remained behind. 'What have I gotten myself into?'

"You okay Will?"

Will looked up. She hadn't noticed Harry had stayed behind. "Yeah."

"You sure?" Harry asked.

"I'm just nervous, that's all." Will said, forcing herself to smile.

"You'll do fine. Don't worry, it's always fun when you get out there." Harry said.

"I guess."

"Oh come on! Would I have put you on the team if I didn't think you could do this?" Harry said.

Will tucked dome of her red hair behind her ears. "I guess not."

"Come on. Let's go."

Will stood up and followed Harry out onto the Quidditch field, and all seven players stood waiting.

Two long minutes passed and the Slytherin team still hadn't shown up.

'Either they're really nervous or they've got a really good game plan.' Will thought. 'I sure hope it's not the second one.'

Dean Thomas, who was commentating, used the time waiting for the Slytherins to talk about the Gryffindor players.

"Of course our Seeker and team captain, Harry Potter! That's right, give him a hand, he's won us pretty much every match since he joined the Gryffindor team, and he's the best since Charlie Weasly! And also returning is Chaser Katie Bell, talented and cute, isn't she? As well as Ron Weasly, a one of the greatest Keepers we ever had. We also have some new players this year. Peter Keene, good Beater from what I've heard, but I guess we'll all find out today. Cody Larson, the youngest player on the team, and let's hope he's not too excited 'cause that could be his downfall. We have Ginny Weasly, Ron's younger sister and quiet the cutie. And last but not least, Will Vandom! Will's a new student this year, she seems to have a knack for flying and she's pretty cute too. Has anyone else noticed that all of the girls on this team are good looking?"

"Mr. Thomas! I'm paying you to talk about Quidditch, not girls!" Professor McGonagall's voice barked.

"Sorry Professor."

"Don't make me regret giving you this job." Professor McGonagall said.

"Look out!" Katie suddenly cried.

Will turned around, yelped, and ducked beside Ginny and Katie just as seven green blurs flew over her head.

When she got up, Madame Hooch was scolding the Slytherin team.

"I've never seen such disregard for sportsmanship, rules, and the safety of the opponent!" Madame Hooch yelled. "Fifty points from Slytherin! I will be speaking to you later Mr. Malfoy!"

Up in the crowd, the showing off of the Slytherins also upset the Gryffindor, while the Slytherins were of course impressed.

"Those jerks! They outta be kicked out of the game! Let Gryffindor win automatically!" Lavender Brown yelled.

"They almost killed Will!" Cornelia shouted, waving her red and gold flag angrily.

"What a bunch of jackasses!" Irma cried.

Elyon spun around to see Hay Lin, Irma, Luna, and Taranee sitting in the row behind them. "Aren't you guys supposed you be with the Ravenclaws?"

"We felt like sitting here." Luna replied, folding her arms under her red and gold shawl, her usual dreamy smile in place.

"Won't you guys get in trouble?" Cornelia asked.

"We can't get in trouble if we don't get caught." Hay Lin answered, grinning.

Cornelia and Elyon sighed. "Well, we can't exactly tell them to go away." Cornelia whispered.

"Why would we want to?" Elyon replied, smiling.

"And Slytherin starts with a completely rule breaking and damn foul entrance!" Dean Thomas's voice roared from the commentary stand.

"Mr. Thomas! Do have to get someone else to do this job next match!" Professor McGonagall barked.

"No, Professor! You won't! No, really I swear!" Dean said.

Will rolled her eyes.

"Now then, team captains! Shake hands!" Madame Hooch said.

Harry and Malfoy did not shake hands, they merely glared at each other.

"Fine then. Mount your brooms!" Madame Hooch barked, clearly irritated.

Will mounted her broom and glanced over at Harry. 'Please let me not let him down.'

Madame Hooch blew her whistle and all fourteen players shot into the air.

"Will! Catch!" Katie's voice yelled.

Will turned just in time to catch the Quaffle, which had been thrown to start the game by Madame Hooch. Will saw Harry and Malfoy shoot off after something small and gold. 'That must be the Snitch!'

"And the game begins!" Dean's voice cried.

Will, who hadn't been paying very close attention, swerved to avoid crashing into a Slytherin Beater, and then tossed the Quaffle to Ginny.

"Gryffindor Chaser Will Vandom just misses Slytherin Beater Alex Drunski, and then tosses the Quaffle to Ginny Weasly. Come on Ginny!" Dean shouted.

Ginny zoomed towards the Slytherin goal, but Goyle took the Quaffle and flew to the other end of the field.

Will turned and followed underneath Goyle in case he dropped the Quaffle.

However he didn't drop it, but a Bludger hit by Cody made him throw the Quaffle towards the goal before he had a good aim too avoid getting hit by it.

Ron caught it easily and threw it to Will, who signaled to Ginny that they were going to do the move Will had made up.

They tossed the Quaffle back in froth between each other, so that the Slytherin players didn't have time to get it, sometimes getting closer to each other, zigzagging, and flying in loops around each other.

When the reached the goal posts Ginny had the Quaffle and she dived, and no one saw her toss it to Will as the Slytherin Keeper dove after her.

Will threw the Quaffle, prayed it would go in, and it went right threw the highest post.

"Ten to Zero with Gryffindor in the lead!" Dean shouted.

Will sighed while her follow Chasers cheered. 'Maybe I can do this after all.'

In the Gryffindor crowd, Elyon, Hermione, and Cornelia were cheering their heads off, whole Taranee, Irma, Hay Lin, and Luna stood on their chair, holding up a banner that said, "Gryffindor for the Gold".

"Oi! Is there any room from me?"

"Of course Hagrid!" Hermione said.

Irma, Taranee, Hay Lin, and Luna moved into the same row as Cornelia, Elyon, and Hermione to make room for Hagrid, who stood behind the seven girls.

"I've been watching from me hut, but it's just not the same." Hagrid said. "I'm not supposed to take sides, but hopefully it won't matter to much to Dumbledore."

"I'm sure it won't." Cornelia replied.

Just then, Harry dived with Malfoy close behind.

"Harry's seen the Snitch!" Hermione cried.

"Go Hary go!" Elyon shouted, waving her red and gold flag wildly.

Luna, Irma, Hay Lin, and Taranee held up their banner again, while jumping up and down, yelling.

"Come on!" Cornelia yelled.

The girls and Hagrid's shouts were lost in the cries and yells coming from the Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw stands.

Even the other players had stopped to watch the two Seekers.

"GO!" Will, Katie, and Ginny screamed.

Even the Slytherin Keeper, who had the Quaffle, was watching.

Harry pulled up sharply with something gold clutched in his right hand.

"He's got it! Harry's got the Snitch!" Will shouted, heading down the ground with Katie and Ginny close behind.

Peter, Cody, and Ron followed as well, cheering and yelling.

In the stands, Elyon and Cornelia were hugging each other while jumping up and down, Irma, Hay Lin, Luna, and Taranee were on their seats again, touching their banner with their wands, which was making it roar, and Hermione was also standing on her chair, waving her red and gold scarf like a flag.

Hagrid had appeared to forget that he wasn't supposed to take sides, as he was yelling, "Go Gryffindor!"

"The final score is 160 to 0, and Gryffindor wins!" Dean shouted. "Even though Slytherin started with that damn horrible-"

"Mr. Thomas, you're fired." Professor McGonagall said sternly.

Will ran over to Harry with the others at her heels. "Harry! The game didn't even last twenty minutes! That was awesome!"

Ginny and Katie hugged Harry at the same, while Peter, Cody, and Ron thumped him on the back.

Harry broke free of them when the other players went to go greet the students who were pouring onto the field and Harry ran over to Will and hugged her, laughing.

"You were great Will! Maybe next game'll last longer and you'll get to show everyone what you can do!" Harry laughed.

Will started laughing too, and threw her arms around Harry's neck. "Just long as I get to play at all!"

Harry let go of Will, turning to the crowd. "Should we go meet everyone in that screaming crowd?"

Will smiled. "Absolutely!"

* * *

"That was incredible!" Irma exclaimed as the group of seven girls, the normal six and Luna, walked back to the castle.

"The games are always great, just wait until the Quidditch cup!" Luna replied. "Oh, I do hope Gryffindor and Ravenclaw make it."

"I only hope the next game is longer." Hay Lin laughed.

"Me too! I wanna show everyone just what I can do!" Will said, punching the air.

Elyon was about to agree, when she felt someone or something watching them. She stopped and turned to face the forest, the smile fading from her face.

"Elyon? What is it?" Cornelia asked, as the whole group came to a stop.

"You go on ahead and I'll meet up with you later. There's something I need to do." Elyon answered.

""It's not a good idea to go off alone." Will said.

"Yeah. There might be Grackle Horned Owls around." Luna agreed, that dreamy tone back in her voice.

Irma and Hay Lin laughed, while Cornelia rolled her eyes at their new friend's remark.

"I'll go with her." Cornelia said, walking to stand beside Elyon.

"Be careful." Taranee warned, cautiously.

Irma, Hay Lin, Taranee, Luna, and Will continued up the path to the castle and Cornelia and Elyon walked towards the Forbidden Forest.

"Why are we going to the forest?" Cornelia asked.

"There's something in there." Elyon whispered. "Stay quiet."

Cornelia nodded, but still was curious.

They walked between the tall oak and pine trees in silence for five minutes.

"Elyon, it's getting dark in here. Maybe we should cast lomos." Cornelia whispered urgently.

Elyon was about to reply, when they heard a loud crack behind them.

The two girls slowly turned and saw something that made them too frightened to even scream.

The dead, bleeding ten foot tall spider was bad enough on it's own, but standing over the dead spider was something much more frightening. None other than Lord Cedric, in his snake form, threw his head back and roared.

Elyon and Cornelia turned and ran as fast as their legs could carry them, hoping that Cedric hadn't seen then.

They didn't speak or stop until they reached the entrance hall, and shut the huge oak doors behind them.

"What is he doing here?" Cornelia asked, gasping for breath.

"I don't know, but it can't be good and it has it involve us." Elyon replied, eyes still wide. "We've got to tell Will."

"We don't have to run, do we?" Cornelia asked, glancing at the marble staircase.

"No, I found a secret passage behind the painting of Morgan Lee Fay down in the dungeons." Elyon said. "It leads up to the seventh floor."

The two girls walked down into the dungeons and tried to find the painting in the dim torch light.

"I hate it down here." Cornelia muttered. "No wonder Snape stays down here."

Elyon found the painting, pulled at a gold fang hanging at the bottom of the frame, and the painting swung forward, revealing a spiral staircase.

They climbed inside, took out their wands, muttered, "Lumos" and their wands lit up at their tips.

The painting swung back, leaving them in total darkness aside from the lights from their wands.

It took them ten minutes or so, but they came out onto the seventh floor from behind a painting of Merlin (Cornelia briefly laughed at the irony), and then they sprinted over to the Fat Lady.

"My goodness. What's the rush, dears?" The Fat Lady said, eyeing their pink faces.

"We have to talk to Will." Elyon panted.

"Unicorn horn." Cornelia gasped.

The Fat Lady swung forward, and Cornelia and Elyon scrambled inside the common room.

"Where have you guys been?" Will asked from her place on one of the scarlet couches next to Hermione. "We're having a party to celebrate the victory."

"We have to talk now." Cornelia said. "It's about the problem."

"What problem?" Will asked.

"You know, the snake problem." Elyon replied, lowering her voice slightly.

Will eyes widened and she stood up. "I'll be right back everyone."

The girls walked up to the girl's dorm, which was empty, but even then they found a corner to talk in.

"Were you talking about Cedric?" Will asked.

"Yes! He's here Will! He's in the forest right now!" Cornelia cried.

"Phobos must have busted him out of prison!" Elyon said. "We saw him with our own eyes! He killed a giant spider!"

"Calm down, okay?" Will replied, a note of panic in her voice. "Did he see you?"

"I don't think so." Cornelia answered.

"We'll tell Irma, Hay Lin, Taranee, Caleb, and Professor Lin later." Will said. "Let's just try and have a little fun right now."

The three friends walked down to the party, knowing they wouldn't be able to fully enjoy it with the thought of Cedric being to close to them at the back of their minds.

**End Chapter Fourteen**

A/N: You may have noticed I edited out some of the thoughts of the characters, I've started to prefer that form of writing, where you're not exactly sure what the characters are thinking.


	15. Trust

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter or W.i.t.c.h.

**Chapter Fifteen**

**Trust**

Elyon sat in the library with five open books spread out on the table in font of her, working on her Defense Against the Dark Arts essay on counter jinxes.

"Hey Elyon, can we talk?" A voice behind her asked.

She pretended she hadn't noticed, as she did not want to talk to the speaker.

Draco Malfoy, however, walked over to the seat in font of Elyon and sat down. "Come on Elyon. Just listen to me at least."

Elyon just kept working, lips pursed, not even glancing up to look into Malfoy's cold blue eyes.

"I just wanted to tell you-" Malfoy started anyway.

Elyon stood up, shoved her quill, ink, and half written essay into her bag, tucked one book under her arm, and walked over to Madame Pince's desk. "I'd like to check this book out, please." Elyon said, handing the book to Madame Pince.

Madame Pince wrote Elyon's name on the check out card, along with the due date, and handed it back to Elyon. "Be sure to return it on time, Miss Brown."

"Of course. Thank you Madame Pince." Elyon replied, turning and walking out of the library.

Malfoy looked at the books spread out over the table before picking one up, and toke it to Madame Pince.

She wrote his name on the check out card, looking at him curiously (he never checked out books) and handed it to him with out saying anything.

Malfoy hurried out of the library and saw Elyon walking towards the stairs. "Elyon! Wait!"

Elyon stopped, and turned around, glaring at Malfoy.

Malfoy caught up to Elyon and handed the book he had checked out to her. "Here. I think this'll help with Professor Lin's essay."

"You? Doing something nice? Well, now I've seen everything." Elyon said with a false laugh.

"By the way, we're supposed to do our Care of Magical Creatures essay on Grindylows before Tuesday." Malfoy replied, a harsh tone creeping into his voice.

"I already did my half of it! You do yours alone!" Elyon shouted. "Maybe I'll loan you my notes, since my grade depends on yours as we're partners, and you're too busy staring at me to take notes yourself!"

"What's your problem? I work up the nerve to be nice, and this is the thanks I get?"

"Since when does it take nerve to be nice? And, if you must know, that stunt you pulled at the Quidditch match is what my problem is!" Elyon yelled.

"You think I wanted to do that?"

"Well, you did it didn't you? Or where those clones of you and your team of apes who nearly knocked someone's head off?" Elyon spat.

"I didn't plan it, I was put up to it by-" Malfoy stared to reply in a shout, but he seemed to realize what he was saying and didn't finish.

"Someone put you up to it? Who?" Elyon asked, forgetting she was mad at him for a moment.

"Never mind, just take the book and go meet your friends or something." Malfoy muttered, staring to walk away.

"Draco wait!" Elyon said, quickly walking after him.

He turned and his face was so close to hers that their noses were almost touching.

Elyon blushed and took a step back quickly.

"Be careful, all right? You and your friends. They know who you are, Elyon." Malfoy whispered.

"Who does? What do you know about us?" Elyon asked.

"Just be careful who you trust, okay?" Malfoy said. Then he paused like he was summoning up the courage to do something.

'What in the world is going on?' Elyon thought.

"I… I'd like us to be friends, at least." Malfoy blurted out suddenly.

"Come again?" Elyon replied, feeling her face turn bright red.

"Look, I'm sorry for all the stuff I said about you and your friends earlier this year." Malfoy said, shoving his hands in his pockets, not looking at her.

Elyon gulped, lost for words.

"Well, I have to go." Malfoy said, turning.

"Wait, why are suddenly doing this?" Elyon stammered, finding her voice.

Malfoy turned back to her. "Well, I- you see- that was- um, I just feel like it."

Elyon felt her heart hammering in her chest. 'Malfoy, the worst of the Slytherin snobs, is saying that he's sorry?'

'But he's a Slytherin, Elyon.' Said a small voice in the back of Elyon's head.

'But you're falling in love with him!' Exclaimed another voice in her head.

'Am not.' Said the other voice.

"Okay, we'll be friends, but we can't let the other Gryffindors or Slytherins see us hanging out, or who knows what'll happen." Elyon said, feeling the blush on her cheeks ebb away a little. "I have to meet Cornelia in the courtyard, so, I'll see you later."

"All right then." Malfoy replied.

Elyon walked down the marble staircase, a number of thoughts going through her head.

When she thought Malfoy couldn't see her or hear her, she paused and then skipped all the way down to the courtyard, repeating Malfoy's words over and over again in her thoughts.

"Looks like someone's having a good day." Cornelia said, as Elyon skipped over to the stone bench she was sitting on.

"The best." Elyon replied, sitting down next to Cornelia. "Now, that horrible Divination homework."

"Wanna tell me about it?" Cornelia asked with a grin, not letting Elyon change the subject.

"Not just yet." Elyon said.

Meanwhile, up on the third floor, Malfoy stared down the marble staircase, which he had watched Elyon skip happily down. He stood there for a moment, before he stormed away, first clentched.

* * *

"So, the girl did not use her powers when Malfoy junior almost killed her at the Quidditch match." Lord Voldemort said, coldly.

"No, my lord. But I can assure you I will punish my son for not succeeding." Lucis Malfoy replied from his place kneeling on the floor at his master's feet.

"That will not be necessary, Lucis. Your son is getting close to Princess Elyon, is he not?" Vodlemort hissed cruelly.

"I told him to do so. I will check on his progress later, my lord."

"Good. Your son is making a fine Death Eater, Lucis. With your son in Princess Elyon's trust, we can lead her into a trap, and then her foolish friends will follow to try and save her."

"May I ask what kind of trap, my lord?" Lucis asked.

"There is time to figure that out." Voldemort said, icily. "With Lord Cedric in the forest watching the girls and young Draco leading the Princess blindly into believing that he cares her and into any trap we set, there is no possible way we can fail."

Voldemort laughed in his high cold laugh, and Lucis Malfoy smirked behind his mask.

**End Chapter 15**


	16. Christmas at Hogwarts

A/N: You may want to know that I've been picturing the characters wearing uniforms from the movie, the first two; I don't like the ones from movie three and on. So, I'll be making references to the uniforms being designed that way.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own W.i.t.c.h. or Harry Potter.

**Chapter Sixteen**

**Christmas at Hogwarts**

Nothing exciting happened again until the beginning of December when the girls went on the second, more relaxing, trip to Hogsmeade trip, and the first winter snow started to fall, but that hardly counted as the kind of excitement the guardians and Elyon were used to.

The sign up sheets to go home for the holidays were put up on the bulletin boards in every house common room in early December.

Elyon, Hay Lin, Irma, and Will all agreed that they wanted to stay and see what Christmas was like at the school, however, Cornelia and Taranee, were among those going home.

Taranee had written to Percy Weasley, asking him to arrange a way home for them and Percy had written back saying that he would meet them at the train station and send them home by Floo Powder.

So a week before Christmas, the six friends, and Caleb, who was staying at Hogwarts for the holidays, as he was a teacher, went to the train station to say their goodbyes, promises to write, and send Christmas presents.

Also on the platform was Seamus, who was saying goodbye to Dean. After Dean had gotten on the train, Seamus looked over at Hay Lin and waved.

Hay Lin smiled and waved back, a light blush on her cheeks.

"Bye Will!"

Will looked over at the train, and saw Harry waving at her through an open window as the train began moving. "Merry Christmas Will!" He called.

"Merry Christmas Harry!" Will called back, waving. Will watched the train until it rounded a corner and was gone.

Will, Irma, Hay Lin, and Elyon walked back up to the castle through the thick snow, wondering what they would do for the next week.

* * *

Aside from Will and Elyon, Seamus was the only other Gryffindor staying for Christmas.

About twelve Ravenclaws, fifteen Hufflepuffs, and six Slytherins were also staying. (Malfoy was one of the six Sltherins, much to Will, Irma, and Hay Lin's disgust.)

Will noticed that Seamus made up excuses to talk to or even just say hi to Hay Lin, and that Hay Lin blushed whenever he did this. Will also noticed that Elyon and Malfoy would wave or smile at each other if the passed in the hall.

Irma, who must have noticed these things as well, because she brought it up one day when she and Will were sitting outside in the courtyard. (Hay Lin was with Seamus, and Elyon claimed that she was in the library, though Will had feeling she was talking to Malfoy.) "Elyon can't possibly like him, can she?" She said.

Will shrugged. "I don't know. It's possible. She liked Cedric, remember?"

"Yeah, but she didn't know he was evil. It's as plain as days that Malfoy's pure evil!" Irma replied, waving her arms in the air.

"I agree, but don't tell Elyon that." Will warned giving Irma a meaningful glance.

"Why not? It's our job as guardians to protect her majesty Queen Elyon, isn't it?" Irma asked.

"Yeah, but not so loud. Do want someone to think we're crazy." Will hissed.

"Cornelia pointed out before that no one would believe any of this." Irma said, folding her arms.

"I still don't like the idea of anybody being called a nut job, us or someone else, because of you being unable to keep a low profile." Will replied.

"I can to keep a low profile." Irma argued with a fake pout.

"Oh really? Remember the 'Stella' incident?" Will asked.

"Hey, that was two years ago, and you said you'd never talk about it again." Irma replied.

"Just checking to see if you remember." Will said, smirking.

* * *

Christmas Eve came and the halls were echoing with the sounds of laughter, singing, and Filch chasing Peeves around, threatening him and trying to hit him with a broom.

It was a little after noon, and Hay Lin was sitting in the snowy courtyard, with her cloak and blue and silver scarf wrapped around her to keep her warm, simply enjoying the quiet of the still winter day.

"Hi Hay Lin."

Hay Lin looked up and smiled at the speaker. "Hello Seamus. Nice to see you."

"Hey, are your friends around?" Seamus replied.

"No, Will and Elyon are studying, and Irma's probably making trouble somewhere." Hay Lin answered.

"Would you like to walk and talk with me?" Seamus asked.

Hay Lin stood up. "Sure."

They walked into the school and around the ground floor.

"So, what's your family like?" Hay Lin asked.

"Well, my dad's a muggle, and my mum's a witch. He was pretty shocked when he found out." Seamus answered with a slight laugh. "What about you?"

"My parents are both muggles, but my grandma, Professor Lin, is a witch. We own a Chinese restaurant back in Heatherfield."

"How long have you known your friends?"

"Irma and I have been friends since we were little. We met Cornelia and Elyon in middle school, and Will and Taranee moved to Heatherfield shortly afterwards. We had a sort of magical bond since we met." Hay Lin explained.

Seamus stopped, and held up his hand to hush her.

Hay Lin stopped, and heard footsteps. She let a small amount of sliver magic flow from her fingertips and towards the footsteps, careful to not let Seamus see. She closed her eyes, and listened, her magic helping her identify who was coming. When she realized who it was, her eyes flew open. "It's Snape!"

"I'm already in trouble with him! Let's go!"

"Where?"

"Here!" Seamus grabbed her hand and pulled her into an empty classroom.

They both stood quiet, holding their breath until they were sure Snape was gone.

"Well, that was fun." Hay Lin sighed with a giggle.

"Yeah, well let's go." Seamus replied, turning to the door.

Hay Lin glanced up at the ceiling and blushed. "Umm… Seamus?"

"Yeah?"

"Look up."

Seamus looked up and went pale. "Mistletoe."

Hay Lin gulped and stared and Seamus, unsure of what he would do next.

Seamus answered her unspoken question by closing his eyes and slowly leaning toward Hay Lin.

Hay Lin closed her eyes, hardly daring to breath.

Then their lips met. It only a second or two, and Hay Lin was a little disappointed when Seamus pulled away, but both of them had loved it.

"Err… Nice kiss." Hay Lin said, blushing bright pink.

"Listen, Hay Lin, there's something I want to tell you." Seamus said.

"Yes?" Hay Lin asked hopefully.

"I- I- I think you're really nice." Seamus stammered.

"And?"

"And you're really pretty." Seamus continued, starting to blush.

"Anything else?" Hay Lin asked, beaming and blushing.

"And I really like you." Seamus finished.

"That's great 'cause I like you too." Hay Lin declared.

"Really?"

"Really really."

"Well, I think Snape's gone. Do you want me to walk you back up to your common room?" Seamus said.

"I've got a better idea. How about we walk around the lake together?" Hay Lin replied.

Seamus grinned. "Yeah, that does sound like a better idea."

So they left the classroom and made their way toward the lake, holding hands.

* * *

"Hey Will! Wake up sleepy head!" Elyon's voice said.

Will slowly opened her eyes, sat up, and saw Elyon standing at the foot of her bed, smiling.

"Merry Christmas Will!" Elyon said.

"Merry Christmas." Will yawned, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Your presents are by the foot of your bed, I already started opening mine." Elyon said cheerfully, point to the mess of wrapping paper by her bed.

Will excitedly pulled all her presents onto her bed, and started unwrapping them, while Elyon returned to her bed on the other side of the room to finish with her presents.

Elyon finished and went to stand by the mirror, laughing as she looked at herself. She was wearing a long silvery skirt from Hay Lin and a gold necklace from Cornelia. Among her other gifts were more art supplies from Irma, a book about astronomy (Elyon's favorite subject) from Will, and more photos of Meridian from Taranee.

Will got a book about frogs from Irma, a frog plushie from Cornelia, a purple scarf from Hay Lin, half a heart shaped best friends forever necklace from Taranee (Will knew Taranee must have the other half), candy from Elyon, and a frog earrings along with a note from her mother.

"What's the note say?" Elyon asked, starting to get dressed.

"My mom and Mr. Collins are getting married. I knew it'd happen sooner or later." Will sighed.

"Mr. Collins isn't that bad." Elyon replied, pulling on a sweater over a T-shirt.

"Yeah, I guess. At least I'll be at school for most of the year next year so I won't have to be at home with the two of them." Will said.

"When's the big day?" Elyon asked, pulling on her grey socks.

"July. They planned it so I'd be at home and could come to the wedding. I'm going to be maid of honor." Will answered.

The two finished getting dressed, putting on warm sweaters and sweatpants, and went down to the common room.

Seamus was their, fiddling with his hair, and combing it.

Elyon and Will glanced at each other when they reached the bottom of the staircase.

"Seamus doesn't ever comb his hair." Elyon whispered.

"He does now. Bet I know why." Will whispered back.

"Merry Christmas Seamus." Elyon said, walking into the middle of the common room.

"Oh, Merry Christmas." Seamus replied distractedly.

Will and Elyon left the common room and walked down the marble staircase towards the first floor.

"Seamus was acting weird, wasn't he?" Elyon said.

"He's probably going to see Hay Lin." Will replied casually.

"Why?" Elyon asked as they passed the fifth floor.

"You mean you haven't noticed? It's obvious that he likes her." Will answered, nodding hello at a Ravenclaw prefect coming up the stairs.

"Oh, I've had other things on my mind." Elyon said.

"Such as?"

"I don't want to tell anyone, not yet anyway." Elyon replied.

"Does it have something to do with Malfoy?" Will asked frowning.

"I'm not going to answer that question." Elyon said stubbornly.

Will wanted to question Elyon farther, but thought better of it and didn't say anything.

When they got to the first floor, they found Irma and Hay Lin talking by the trophy room.

"Merry Christmas guys." Will greeted as she and Elyon walked over to them.

"Merry Christmas to you too." Hay Lin said when Will and Elyon were standing in front of her and Irma.

"So what's up?" Irma asked. "How was present time?"

"My mom and Mr. Collins are getting married." Will said with a sigh.

"Really? Well I guess it was bound to happen." Irma replied scratching her head.

"Seamus was acting kinda weird this morning. Do you guys have any idea why?" Elyon said, changing the subject.

"No idea." Irma said.

Hay Lin just stood there, blushing.

"Hay Lin, do you have any idea why?" Irma asked.

"Well… Yesterday Seamus and I were walking around, and then we hid in a classroom from Snape, and their was some mistletoe hanging above us…" Hay Lin said quietly.

"What! Did you kiss!" Elyon exclaimed taking a step forward.

"It is kind of an unwritten rule that you have to." Hay Lin replied.

"Oh my gosh! You guys kissed! Why didn't you say anything!" Irma said.

"I dunno."

"Did anything else happen?" Will asked.

"Yeah. Seamus asked me to be…" Hay Lin paused for a while. "To be his girlfriend, and I said yes."

The four girls were silent for a minute.

Then Irma said, "You two make such a cute couple. I knew you liked him." And she thumped Hay Lin on the back, grinning.

"Well, he is really handsome." Hay Lin giggled.

"You guys wanna have a snowball fight in the courtyard?" Elyon asked.

"Yeah!" Irma said. "Let's use Malfoy and his goons for target practice, they're over by the lake."

Will, Hay Lin, and Irma laughed, while Elyon pretended to laugh as the headed down the marble staircase.

* * *

"That was a fun snowball fight." Irma said through a mouthful of mashed potatoes.

"Irma, don't talk with you mouthful. It's gross." Will replied.

It was Christmas dinner, and all the girls had agreed to sit together so they were all at the Gryffindor table (Seamus was at the Hufflepuff table sitting with some friends).

"I don't think I've ever heard anyone scream like that, especially not a guy." Elyon laughed.

As it turned out, the girls had done a sneak snowball attack on Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle, and they all, even Elyon, had gotten a huge laugh out of it.

The best part was that the Slytherin boys hadn't seen them, so they didn't know who had throw all those snowballs at them.

"Hey, look at Snape." Will said, pointing up at the table, wear Snape was frowning over the scenes of smiling teachers and students, snow falling from the magical ceiling, and ghosts singing Christmas carols.

"That's probably one of the best parts of the day." Hay Lin giggled.

"I wonder where Caleb is." Will said. "He's not at the staff table, but Yan Lin is."

"He's most likely in Meridian talking to Vathek. He goes there once a month to check up on things, and I think it's nice for him to spend Christmas at his home." Elyon answered.

"Does he report to you after he checks on things?" Irma asked, her mouth now full of cookies, making Will sigh and shake her head.

"Yeah, things are going good so far. We have all a Phobos's followers, and everything's peaceful." Elyon said.

"Good, I wouldn't want to have to run off the fight in Meridian while we're in school." Hay Lin replied.

"How's Mrs. Rudolf?" Will asked.

"Oh, she's fine. Caleb says she's misses all of us." Elyon replied.

After dinner, the girls headed up to their dorms, and Elyon and Will said goodnight to Hay Lin and Irma when they reached the fourth floor, and then continued up to the seventh.

When the got to the girls dorm, Elyon and Will changed into their pajamas, and got into bed, but sat up talking for a while.

Finally, about half an hour later, Elyon yawned and said, "It's getting late. We should probably turn in."

"Yeah." Will agreed, lying down, and pulling the scarlet blankets up to her chin.

Elyon lay down and said, "Good night Will."

"Good night Elyon." Will replied.

**End Chapter Sixteen****  
**


	17. Christmas at the Burrow

**Disclaimer:**I do not own W.i.t.c.h. or Harry Potter.

**Chapter Seventeen**

**Christmas at the Burrow**

When Harry, Ron and Hermione got off the train at platform 9 3/4, a very unwelcome sight greeted them.

"Percy!" Ron exclaimed, rather rudely. "What're you doing here!"

"Be nice, Ron. He is your brother." Hermione hissed in Ron's ear.

"Not by choice." Ron muttered, making a face.

"I'm here to pick up miss Hale and miss Cook." Percy answered a bit icily.

"Will you be joining us for Christmas, Percy?" Hermione asked politely.

"No, I don't think so Hermione." Percy said, obviously not really wanting to talk to them.

"Oh, but we'd love to have you." Hermione said, elbowing Harry in the ribs when snorted. "We've all missed you." She stepped on Ron's foot, as he was about to protest.

"I've got a lot of work to do." Percy said impatiently. "Now where are miss Hale and miss Cook?"

"Right here Percy." Ginny's voice answered.

Ginny, Luna, Cornelia, and Taranee had just come out of the crowd of students getting off the train, and were standing behind Harry, Ron and Hermione.

"Ah, there you are." Percy said, ignoring Ginny and Luna.

"Nice to see you too Percy." Ginny said sarcastically.

"Let's get going, shall we? I'm sure your parents are dying to see you." Percy said, still ignoring his sister.

"In a minute." Cornelia replied, eyeing him with sudden dislike over the treatment of his sister. She and Taranee moved so that they were in front of Harry, Ron and Hermione.

"See you guys after Christmas." Taranee said. "We'll miss you."

"Bye guys, have a Merry Christmas." Cornelia said.

"Merry Christmas to you too." Hermione replied.

"Have a safe trip." Luna added.

Then Cornelia and Taranee disappeared into the crowd with Percy, while Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Luna called goodbyes, and waved to them.

"Well, we better find mum, Lupin and Tonks." Ginny said. "They'll take us back to the Burrow."

So the group went through the barrier and into the muggle world, where Mrs. Weasley, Tonks and Lupin were indeed waiting for them.

As the group walked closer, Harry noticed the Tonks, whose hair was waist long and black today, was holding hands with Lupin.

Harry was about to point this out to Ron and Hermione, but Mrs. Weasley called, "There you are! Good, I was just about to come and get you."

Ginny and Ron were both hugged and kissed by Mrs. Weasley, while Harry, Hermione and Luna got big hugs from her.

"All right then you lot, we'd best be off no, everyone's supposed at the Burrow before five o'clock and it's already three." Tonks said, one hand on her hip.

"Why do we have to be home by three? We're not babies." Ron said, folding his arms.

"Why do you think? You don't want to have a run in with a Death Eater after dark now, do you?" Tonks replied in a stern voice, but she winked at Ron.

Ron's ears went red, and he didn't respond.

The odd group made their way out of the crowded station, and when they were by the road, Lupin stuck out his wand hand (he was holding Tonks' hand in his other hand).

'Oh no.' Harry thought. He glanced at Ron and Hermione and saw that they didn't look any happier about it.

BANG!

The huge purple Knight Bus appeared by the curb, and the doors opened.

The group climbed onto the bus, and sat in the regular wooden chairs, which, much to Harry's horror, were still not fastened to the floor.

"Oi! Ern, Harry's back again!" Stan Shunpike exclaimed happily. "Hiya Harry, can I get c'ho anythin'?"

"No, thanks." Harry replied, smiling politely.

"Well, if c'ho need somethin', gimme a holler." Stan said, walking off to the front of the bus.

The bus started with a bang, and shot off.

"I still really hate this bus." Ron muttered after he had toppled onto the floor. He was just getting to his feet, when the bus jerked sharply, and Hermione lost her grip on the railing of the staircase, and fell into Ron.

The two landed on the floor, Hermione on Ron's lap, and they stared at each other, Hermione blushing bright pink, and Ron with red ears.

They both climbed to her feet, and Hermione walked back to her seat, and sat down next to Luna.

Hermione hoped no one noticed, but deiced that it was very unlikely that anyone had noticed, as they were all getting thrown around themselves. She glanced at Ron, who was sitting in the row across from her next to Harry, but looked away when he returned the glance.

Both Hermione and Ron spent the rest of the trip in silence, but no one except Harry noticed (he couldn't figure out why they were being so quiet, as he hadn't seen them fall into each other).

When they finally reached the Burrow, everyone got off the bus as fast as they could, and rushed into the house.

"All right, Harry, you're staying in Ron's room, Luna and Hermione, you're staying in Ginny's room, Tonks, you can have Percy's old room, and Lupin, I'm afraid you'll have to sleep in the living room." Mrs. Weasley said once they were inside the house.

"Who else is coming mum?" Ginny asked, as she, Hermione, and Luna rounded up their things to take up to her room.

"Fred and George will be coming for the week, but a far a I know, no one else is coming." Mrs. Weasley answered.

Ginny nodded, and then followed Hermione and Luna up the stairs to her room at a jog.

"Come on, let's go unpack our stuff." Harry said to Ron.

However, before they could go up the stairs, there were two load pops, which caused Ron to drop his things in surprise, and Fred and George stood in Harry and Ron's path.

"Hello Harry. How've ya been mate?" Fred asked.

"Okay, thanks." Harry said.

"And of course, our dear little Ronnie." George said. "How've you been, Ronnie?"

"Oh shut up." Ron snapped, glaring at both twins as he picked up his things. "Now if you two don't mind, Harry and I were about to go up to my room."

"Certainly not, little brother." Fred replied.

Fred and George walked out of their way and over to talk to their mother.

Harry and Ron walked up the stairs to the top floor, where Ron's room was.

The walls in Ron's room were as orange as ever, as was his bedspread. The Chudley Cannons team members waved to Harry and Ron as they zoomed from poster to poster, and there was a cot next to Ron's bed, with the same orange colored quilt on it.

Ron started unpacking, while Harry lay down on the cot, and stared at the ceiling, thinking. "Hey Harry?" Ron said, not looking up from what he was doing.

Harry glanced at Ron. "Yeah?"

"Do you ever think about… girls?"

Harry sat up and stared at Ron with an expression of disbelief on his face. "What? Of course I do."

"What about certain girls, like even just one?" Ron demanded, looking fiercely at Harry.

"Uh, yeah, sometimes, why?"

"Forget it." Ron said. "Let's go play Quidditch or something."

So Harry and Ron went downstairs to get the other to play Quidditch.

* * *

Christmas Eve came just like any other day, and Hermione was sitting alone on her cot in Ginny's room, reading her Ancient Runes schoolbook for the hundredth time.

Everyone else seemed to have something to do, except Hermione

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had gone to visit Bill and Fleur, Harry and gone sledding with Luna and Ginny, Fred and George were in their room (Hermione didn't know what they were doing, but she heard explosions every few minutes), Tonks and Lupin had gone off on Order business and she didn't know what Ron was doing.

Over the last few days, Hermione had been avoiding Ron, and he had been doing the same to her.

Ginny, Luna, and Harry had all noticed this, but deiced amongst themselves that Ron must have done something to make Hermione mad (again) and now they weren't speaking to each other.

Hermione tried not to think about the incident on the bus, but she analyzed it over and over, trying to understand why Ron had been looking at her the way he had, and why he looked at her that certain way almost every time she saw him.

Did it mean he liked her, as she hoped it did, or was he just embarrassed to have been in that situation?

'Boys! How can you tell what they're thinking! Why can't they be more open with their feelings!' Hermione thought bitterly, snapping the book shut. 'Then again, I haven't told him how I feel, have I? Stupid fear of rejection, why does this have to be so damn hard?' Hermione sighed. 'Things were easier when boys had cooties.'

There was a knock at the door, which made Hermione jump.

"Who's there?" She asked.

"It's me." Ron's voice answered.

Hermione got up, walked over to the door, and opened it.

Ron came inside, and sat down on Ginny's bed, while Hermione stood by the door, watching him with her arms folded.

"I just wanted to say sorry." Ron said, after a long awkward silence.

"For what?" Hermione asked, a hint of mild surprise in her voice.

"For what happened on the bus."

"That wasn't you fault. It's that old crazy driver. Honestly, he should be more careful." Hermione said. "He should actually learn how to drive. He'll hurt someone sooner or later."

"So, have you heard from Victor lately?" Ron asked suddenly.

"What?" Hermione said, surprised.

"Never mind."

"No, say that again." Hermione said, anger slowly creeping into her voice.

"I asked if you've heard from Victor Krum."

"I just wanted to be sure I heard you right, and that's none of your business." Hermione snapped.

"Well, that tells me everything. I'll bet you've got a whole chest full of letters." Ron said, dully.

"Mind you own business!" Hermione shouted. "Did you come in her just to ask me about him!"

"Has he asked you to marry him yet? Hermione Krum, wife of the world famous-" Ron started, standing and glaring at Hermione.

"SHUT UP!" Hermione roared, throwing her pillow from her cot at him. "If you must know, he broke up with me because met a girl at one of his Quidditch matches, her name's Helga, and she's closer to his age, and she lives closer to him than I do!" Hermione brushed away hot tears of rage that were welling up in her eyes.

Ron was silent for a few minutes, during which time Hermione tried to get a grip on herself.

"It hurts, doesn't it?" He asked, putting his hands behind his back.

"You have to ask? Oh, your so clueless." Hermione snapped, wiping her face.

"Will you be okay?"

"Yeah, I've always been okay, haven't I? All those adventures we had, all the times I almost got killed." Hermione replied, biting her lip.

"Yeah, but this is different, right?"

"I guess."

Ron started towards the door, without a word.

Hermione would have just watched him go, but some force seem to pull her into Ron's path, so he couldn't leave.

"Hermione, what-" Ron started to ask, but stopped when Hermione hugged him. "Hermione?" He said, feeling himself blush. He didn't know what to do about this.

Hermione just stood there silently, with her arms around Ron's neck, and her eyes closed.

Ron gulped, and slowly returned the hug.

Hermione then stood, and her tip toes, and kissed him, and Ron didn't pull away, but he awkwardly just stood there, before he finally decided it wasn't so awkward after all.

When they pulled away from each other they stared at each other.

"You know, I don't feel so awkward about liking you anymore." Ron said.

"Oh, so you do like me." Hermione replied, smiling.

"Would I have kissed you if I didn't?"

"Hold on a minute, I kissed you. You just stood there and took it."

"Does it really matter?" Ron asked, trying to stop another argument from happening. He did not want to argue with Hermione again, and certainly not after he'd just kissed her.

"…No, I guess not."

"I better go, mum told me to get some homework done." Ron said. "I don't want her coming to check on me."

"Okay, do you need help?" Hermione said, stepping out of his way.

"No, I think I'm good." Ron said, opening the door. "Oh, and Hermione?"

"Yeah?"

"Do me a favor and don't tell Ginny we kissed in her room. She'll go off the wall in she finds out." Ron said.

Hermione laughed. "No problem.

* * *

The next morning, Harry and Ron woke because someone was shaking them, and talking loudly to them.

Harry opened his eyes, and put on his glasses, to see Hermione now shaking Ron awake. He groaned, and lay back down.

"Come on, wake up! Breakfast is ready, then we're going to open presents, and Bill and Fleur are coming over at noon. Wake up!" Hermione said.

"It's Christmas, why can't we sleep in?" Ron yawned.

"It's already ten o'clock! Get up, both of you!" Hermione replied.

Harry sleepily sat up, but Ron wouldn't even open his eyes.

So Hermione did something to wake them both up. She bent over and kissed Ron on the mouth.

Harry fell out of bed in sleepy surprise, stood up quickly, and stared at his two friends.

Ron was now sitting upright, glaring at Hermione with his ears turning slightly pink. "What'd you do that for?"

"It woke you up, didn't it? Now get dressed, and come down stairs." Hermione replied, slipping out the door.

Harry stared at Ron. "Are you two-"

"Boyfriend and girlfriend? Well, I guess. Victor broke up with her, and she got all upset yesterday, and- well, she likes me." Ron said.

The two dressed in silence, and then came downstairs, to find Ginny and Luna already opening their presents, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and Hermione sitting around the table eating their breakfast.

Harry and Ron sat down at the table on either side of Hermione.

"Happy Christmas boys." Mr. Weasley said, smiling warmly at them.

"Happy Christmas." Harry and Ron said back.

Hermione waited until they were done eating, and then all three friends sat down together to open presents.

"Hey, where're Fred and George?" Ron asked, as he was opening something that looked like it might be socks.

"They took their presents into their room and ate there as well. They say they're really close to some break through. Knowing them, that probably isn't good." Hermione replied.

"Maybe not, but who are we to dyne them from doing their 'work'". Ginny said from the couch, where she was playing a game of Gobstones with Luna with the new set she'd gotten from Harry. "Whatever they're doing will most likely make it even more fun around Hogwarts."

"Maybe it'll be something we can use against Snape or Malfoy." Ron whispered to Harry, so that Mrs. Weasley wouldn't hear.

"Ron, Snape's a teacher, and why don't you leave Malfoy alone. He hasn't done anything to us lately." Hermione hissed, also making sure Mrs. Weasley wouldn't hear. "Don't provoke him and he won't do anything."

"Provoke him! He's the one who's been provoking us the last six years!" Ron said loudly, now that Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were out of earshot.

"I know that, but haven't you noticed he's left us alone lately?" Hermione replied. "He spends more time with Elyon Brown than with the Slytherins now. Of course, no one else sees them because they talk in secret."

"Elyon Brown? You mean Cornelia's friend?" Ron asked.

"Who else would I mean?" Hermione answered. "How many Elyon Brown's do we know?"

"Well, if she's hanging out with Malfoy, she must not know what he's like." Harry said dismissively.

"She slapped him at the Halloween party though, remember?" Hermione said.

Harry and Ron just shrugged.

Hermione rolled her eyes.

* * *

After they were done unwrapping presents, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Luna, Fred, and George went out to have a snowball fight in the garden.

At one o'clock, Mrs. Weasley called them all inside because Bill and Fleur would be arriving at any minute.

So they all went up stairs to their rooms, changed into nicer, drier, clothes, and got all the snow out of their hair.

When they came downstairs, Bill and Fleur were already standing in the living room, talking to Lupin and Tonks, who had just came in from visiting Moody.

Everyone spent the rest of the day in doors, partly because it started snowing hard, dashing Harry, Ron, Ginny and Luna's hopes of playing a game of Quidditch.

Fred and George disappeared back up to their room after saying hello to Bill and Fleur, Ginny and Luna also disappeared into Ginny's room with an arm full of teen muggle magazines (something Cornelia had introduced the two of them to), Harry, Ron, and Hermione all took turns playing each other at Wizard's chess in the living room, Mr. Weasley, Bill and Fleur spent all afternoon talking in the garden under a canopy, Tonks and Lupin disappeared again, and Mrs. Weasley started cooking dinner.

Early in the evening, Tonks and Lupin turned up covered in snow just at the moment Mrs. Weasley said that dinner was ready.

Everyone sat down at the table after it had been set, but Bill remained standing, with his arm around Fleur.

"I have something I'd like to tell you all." He said proudly. "Fleur and I are going to be married this June."

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley jumped to their feet, and began congratulating Bill and Fleur, Tonks and Lupin did so as well, while everyone else looked at each other, and shook their heads.

"Well, that'll make her our sister in law." Fred whispered to George, just loud enough for the others to hear.

"Sister in law?" Ron said, all the color going from his face. "Fleur? My sister in law?"

Hermione glanced at Harry, who returned the look, with a small smile on his face, which made her giggle.

Luna and Ginny had their hands over their mouths to keep themselves from laughing at poor Ron, but they still giggled uncontrollably, which made Ron glare at them.

After dinner, Bill and Fleur went home, and Mrs. Weasley sent everyone up to bed.

Harry said goodnight to Ginny and Luna, who went into their room, and then walked a ways up the stairs from Ron, who was saying a private goodnight to Hermione. Harry and Ron put on their pajamas and got into bed.

"Night Harry." Ron yawned.

"Goodnight Ron." Harry replied.

**End Chapter Seventeen**


	18. In The Forest

**Disclaimer:**I do not own Harry Potter or W.i.t.c.h.

**Chapter Eighteen**

**In The Forest**

Will and Elyon met Irma and Hay Lin on the train station to welcome back Taranee and Cornelia back on the day all the students were coming back from the Holiday vacation.

Cornelia and Taranee jumped off the train, and rushed over to their friends, grinning.

While Cornelia and Taranee talked with Elyon, Hay Lin, and Irma, Will wandered off by herself looking for a certain someone.

"Hey Will!" A voice called.

Will turned, and smiled at Harry who was walking over to her. She started walking towards him, and met him half way.

"So how was your Christmas?" Will asked.

"Fine. How was yours?" Harry replied.

Will sighed. "It was good but it could have been better. My mother sent me a little telling me that she's getting married in June."

"Is that bad?"

"She's marrying my middle school history teacher." Will said, rolling her eyes.

"Oh, well I see how that would be awkward." Harry replied.

"Where are Hermione and Ron?" Will asked, changing the subject.

"They're talking to Luna and Ginny right now." Harry answered, looking over his shoulder briefly. "I think it's safe to say they had a good Christmas too."

"That's good to hear." Will said. "Was it better than yours?" She added with the intent to give him a friendly teasing.

"Well, maybe. Let's just say that Hermione and Ron are more than just friends now." Harry replied, choosing his words carefully.

Will smiled, and slapped a fist on her open palm. "I knew they liked each other! Lavender owes me ten gallons!"

Harry stared at her, amused. "You've been betting on whether Hermione and Ron like each other?"

"Yeah, well, it was just for fun." Will explained. "Only girls have been betting of course."

Harry laughed. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Anyway, do you know when the next Quidditch match is? The dates are usually announced over the holidays."

"Yeah, it's happening next week. It's Ravenclaw vs. Hufflepuff." Will answered. "My money's on Ravenclaw."

"Whoever wins we have to play against in the finals you know." Harry said.

"I didn't really think about that." Will replied, frowning a little. "Oh well, it's fine by me I guess."

"Do you know if Irma and Hay Lin are any good?" Harry asked.

"I'm sure they are or they wouldn't have made the team. Hay Lin must be really good if they replaced Cho Chang after seeing her play." Will replied. "But they won't let me watch them practice, they say it'd give us an advantage."

"Makes sense."

"Well I guess I should be getting back to the castle, the others are probably looking for me." Will said. "Bye Harry. It was nice to talk to you, I'll see you later."

"Yeah, it was nice to talk to you too." Harry replied.

Will was already walking up toward the castle with Taranee, who she had just greeting with a hug, so he wasn't sure if she had heard him.

With a shrug, he strode off to find Ron and Hermione.

* * *

The day of the Quidditch match loomed closer and closer, and the players on both teams were starting to get nervous.

Hay Lin and Irma were actually the least nervous, even though this was going to be their first game.

Seamus and Hay Lin were both keeping quiet about their relationship, but Harry knew about it because Ron had told him and Hermione that he had seen them kissing in a corner of the library one day, and, naturally, Hermione scolded him not to tell anyone because they obviously didn't want anyone to know

Elyon had announced that she would be commentating the next Quidditch match and was going to do her best not to screw it up (she was looking at Dean when she said this).

Will also discovered that several relationships had started over the holidays and Will noticed she was one of the few sixth years who didn't have a boyfriend, but she decided it didn't really bother her that much.

As much as she had liked dating Matt, who had politely broken up with her last year, as he was tried of her having to cancel dates for guardian stuff, but had promised to keep her secret, and the two were still close friends, she wasn't sure she was ready to start another relationship yet.

On a Wednesday afternoon when Will was leaving potions class with Elyon and Cornelia, carrying a mess load of homework Snape had given only to the Gryffindors, Ron came over and asked if he could talk to Will.

"Sure." Will said. "See you guys later." She said goodbye to Cornelia and Elyon and they went ahead, discussing the popular topic these days, Quidditch.

Almost immediately, he blurted out, "What's the deal with your friend Elyon and Malfoy?"

"Huh?" Will said, confused for a moment. "Oh, they're just friends."

"You sure?"

"No, but it's not my business anyway." Will replied.

"Well, just tell her to be careful around him. He's not to be trusted." Ron said, and then hurried off, seeming kind of embarssed.

Will stood there for a minute, thinking over what Ron had said, shrugged, and walked off to find Elyon and Cornelia. Will found Cornelia in the courtyard, sitting on a stone bench, reading over Snape's homework.

"Where's Elyon?" Will asked, wiping snow off the bench and then sitting down next to Cornelia.

"Oh, Malfoy offered to help her with the potions homework, and they went to the library." Cornelia answered, not taking her eyes off the homework. "Caleb asked me if I'd like to sit with him at the Quidditch match, so I won't be in the Gryffindor box."

"That's okay, I'll sit with Harry, Ron, and Hermione." Will replied, taking out her own homework to work on, telling herself she'd talk to Elyon later.

Of course, being as forgetful as she was, Will forgot about Ron's warning.

* * *

"I can't wait to see Irma and Hay Lin play." Will said excitedly.

It was the day of the Quidditch match and Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Will, who were all wearing Ravenclaw's house colors, all were walking to the Quidditch pitch.

"It's the perfect day for a match too. I only hope the weather's this good for the finals." Harry said.

The winter sun was shinning sleepily, a cool light breeze was blowing, and the snow on the ground was just barely starting to melt away.

"I'll bet Ravenclaw wins." Ron said brightly, swinging his arm in which he was holding Hermione's hand. "I'd love to play against them in the finals. They're the second best team in the school."

"And I'll bet their new players will make them even better." Hermione added, smiling slightly.

"Oi Harry!" A gruff friendly voice called. "I nee' ta talk ta ya!"

Harry turned his head towards Hargid's hut, which they were just passing, to see the grounds keeper waving at him. "I'll see you guys later. I'm going to see what Hagrid wants." Harry said to Ron, Hermione and Will.

"You'll miss the game." Will replied.

"No, I'll make sure it's quick." Harry said.

"Okay, I'll save you a seat then." Will said, and she Ron, and Hermione continued on their way to the pitch.

Harry watched them go, and then turned to walk over to Hargid. When he made it over, he said, "What do you have to tell me? If it could wait, I'd really like to see the game-"

"I'm afraid the game'll hav' ta wait." Hagrid interrupted. "I got a message from Professor Dumbledore this mornin' and he said ta hav' ya meet him in the forest durn' the match."

"But why didn't he give me the message himself and why the forest?" Harry asked, not believing his for a minute.

"He said he didn' want ta risk anyone else gettn' the message." Hagrid replied.

"No one else would have gotten it if he'd told me personally."

"He's a busy man, Dumbledore, don' ya trust yur own headmaster?"

Harry nodded, but was still suspicious. "Are sure it was Dumbledore?"

"O' course I'm sure." Hagrid said grumpily.

"…Well okay, but I want you to come with me just in case."

"He said he wanted ya ta be alone."

"Alone? That really doesn't sound like Professor Dumbledore, asking me to go into the forest alone. Harry said. "Hagrid, are you sure-"

"All righ' all righ'! Hagrid exclaimed. "I can't believe you don' trust Dumbledore's word!"

Harry didn't answer. Hagrid had always been defensive of Dumbledore, but he lets that get in the way of his judgment.' So Harry followed Hagrid into the forest, and then a thought crossed his mind.

"Hagrid, maybe we should go back and get your crossbow or Fang-" Harry started.

"I draw th' line there Harry." Hagrid interrupted frowning.

They walked in silence for several minutes, leaving the cheering and noise of the Quidditch pitch behind them.

Harry had a bad feeling about the whole thing, and that feeling got stronger with every step he took, telling him to turn back.

Then a cold voice said, "You're late, Mr. Potter."

Harry froze and felt the hairs of the back of his neck stand on end. He'd never heard that voice before, and he had a feeling he didn't want to know who it belonged to.

Hagrid turned, while Harry stayed rooted to his spot. "Sorry 'bout that. Now where's Dumbledore?"

Harry finally turned to look at the speaker.

He was a tall thin man, with very long white blonde hair, and ice blue eyes. He was dressed in pale blue robes with a strange red symbol on the front.

"He was supposed to come alone." The man hissed in an almost snake like voice that made Harry think of Voldemort.

"Yeah sorry 'bout tha' too. He wanted me ta come with him jus' in case." Hagrid replied.

"I won't kill you, but what I have to say is for the boy's ears alone." The man raised a hand and shot red light at Hagrid, which caused him fall over.

"Hagrid!" Harry cried, starting toward him.

"Stop right there!" The man commanded harshly. "Stop or your friend dies!"

Harry obeyed and turned to glare at the man.

"Oh don't worry, he's just stunned, and when he wakes up, he won't remember me or any of this."

"Who are you?" Harry demanded bravely.

"Oh how rude of me. I am Lord Cedric of Meridian." The man answered, drawing himself up to full height and he towered over Harry.

'He looks like someone I know, but who?' Harry thought.

"You don't look like I pictured you, Mr. Potter. I thought you'd look more like a hero than a scrawny teenager." Cedric said, rather scathingly.

"You… you look like Elyon Brown. Harry said, finally placing who he resembled. "She's worn that symbol before too, on jewelry"

Cedric's cold eyes softened. "Elyon… yes I know her. There was a time I thought about giving up everything for her, my dreams, my loyalties, even my life, but only for a short while."

Harry was silent, simply staring at the man

"Now for my message." Cedric said, with a touch of sadness in his voice and eyes. "Sirius Black is alive."

"Wh- what?" Harry gasped, having been completely unprepared for that. "But he feel though that veil, and Lupin said that-"

"Forget what your peers have told you Mr. Potter. Remember things are not always as they seem." Cedric interrupted. "That veil connects three different worlds, the world of Earth, the world of the dead, and the world of Meetamoor, and instead of falling into the world of the dead, your godfather fell into Meetmoor."

"What's Meetamoor?" Harry asked slowly.

"You'll find out soon enough, or you could ask your new friends about it."

"New friends?"

"Those six girls, or those two new teachers. Yes, I know about them, we've met several times. I know more about them then you do." Cedric said. "I was also told to tell you that your beloved godfather is probably wandering the streets of the city of Meridian, a stranger in a strange land, with no idea where he is, or how to find those he feels he must find. Sad fate for such a brave man."

"Why should I believe you!" Harry yelled.

"It's up to you whether you believe me or not, but I have a strong feeling that you will." Cedric hissed. "Now, I shall send you back."

"Hey, wait just a-" Harry started, but was cut off when Cedric raised both his hands, said something in a strange language, and Harry was surrounded by a red glow, felt himself being pulled away, and suddenly was standing in the middle of Hagrid's cabin.

Hagrid was on the bed, snoring loudly, and Fang was looking between him and Harry from his place by the fire as if to ask where they had come from.

Harry left the cabin quickly, hoping to get some quiet so he could think, but instead he was greeted by the noise of chattering, laughing, and arguing students.

"Harry!"

Harry turned to his right and saw Will, Hermione, and Ron, walking over to the cabin.

"Harry, where were you?" Will asked. "I saved you a seat the whole game."

"Err… Hagrid needed to talk to me and it took longer than he thought it would." Harry replied.

"Well, it was an awesome match you missed. Ravenclaw's better than ever, they flattened Hufflepuff. We'll need to practice hard if we wanna have any hope at beating them in the finals." Ron said looking both nervous and impressed.

"Hay Lin and Irma and really good." Hermione added. "Hay Lin could turn out to be a rival for you, Harry. She's almost as good as you."

"I can say that Irma'll be trouble for me and the other chasers, I've never seen anyone throw like that." Will said. "I think it's safe to say that they've got just a good a chance at winning the finals as we do."

"I'll bet that'll be a game to look forward to." Hermione said.

Harry wasn't listening to his friends talking, he was thinking about what that Lord Cedric had said. Could Sirius really be alive? Was that what that veil really does? Why didn't anyone tell me that's what it does? Didn't they know? Harry really wished he had gotten a chance to ask Cedric all those questions, and then there was the matter of Cedric telling him that some of his new friends knew him, and Cedric talking about Elyon in that lovelorn way.

"So do you want to come Harry?" Will's voice asked, snapping him back to reality.

"Huh, what?" Harry said.

"I asked if you'd like to come with us to see Professor Lin. We need to ask her something about the homework." Will said.

''How did the subject of Quidditch turn into going to talk to Professor Lin?' Harry thought. "Oh… no, I need to think. I'm going to the lake." Harry replied, and he quickly walked off towards the lake.

"Do you think he heard a word we said?" Will asked curiously. "He looked so distant."

"He does that sometimes, he has a lot on his mind almost all the time." Ron answered. "Now we better find Professor Lin or we're in trouble with that homework."

Will nodded, and followed Ron and Hermione up towards the castle, deciding that if it was normal, she didn't need to worry about it.

* * *

"The new Quidditch captain of Hufflepuff seems to go for size rather than skill now, like the Slytherins. When Cedric Diggory was captain, they had some of the best players in the school." A Ravenclaw sixth year and chaser, name Alison Gray, said.

"Yes, poor old Cedric. May he rest in peace." A Ravenclaw third year and another chaser, named Lisa Jones, replied. "And I don't understand why the new captain picked those players, sure they have the advantage of size, but they don't have skill."

"Apparently the new captain thinks that offense is the best defense." Hay Lin said.

"Or he thought he'd just give a bunch of baboons brooms, dress them in yellow robes, and see what would happen if he let them play." Irma replied with a smirk.

Everyone laughed, even Roger Davies, who stopped quickly, and said, "Irma, we're supposed to respect the other teams. It's not good sportsmanship to joke about another team."

"Even the Slytherins?" Lisa asked.

"…Okay, we can tease them a little." Roger answered with a sniger.

Everyone chuckled.

They heard someone said in a gruff voice as they reached the marble stairs, "What's the matter Longbottom? Can't stick up for yourself unless Potter and your other friends are around to keep you from hurting yourself?"

"I can too! I'm worth ten of all you Slytherins!" Neville's voice said.

The team rounded a corner and found Neville Longbotton stuck in the trick stair, and being bullied by three Slyerthins.

"Hey, leave him alone." Lisa snapped. "What's he ever done to you?"

One of the Slytherins, who was quire tall, walked over and stood in front of Lisa, who was small for her age, and the Slytherin made her look even smaller, but she glared up at him.

Irma stepped between the Slytherin and Lisa. "Why don't you bug off? Go pick on someone your own size, like King Kong."

"Did ya hear that Snubbs?" The smallest Slytherin, who appeared to be the ringleader, said. "I think that girl's asking for trouble."

Hay Lin stepped forward frowning. "Just get lost. We don't wanna fight."

"Well maybe we do." The smallest Slytherin said. "Go on Snubbs, Gerkin, teach these Ravenclaws a lesson."

Snubbs and Gerkin started to advance on the Ravenclaws, while Neville cried, "Leave them alone! You were picking on me weren't you?"

"What's going on here!"

All the students turned to see Caleb, who was with Cornelia, standing at the top of the stairs.

"We were just our way to the common room, when we found these Slytherins making fun of Longbottom, sir." Alison said.

"Is this true?" Caleb asked the Slytherins.

"Oh no sir." The small Slytherin answered. "We were just helping Mr. Longbottom here, and these Ravenclaws came and accused us teasing Longbottom."

"Lair! You were going to beat him up, and then you threatened Lisa when she tried to stand up for Neville!" Irma yelled, starting to loose what little temper she had left.

Caleb and Cornelia had come down the stairs, and were standing between The Ravenclaws and the Slytherins.

"Irma, don't make things worse for yourself." Cornelia whispered. "Caleb will make a fair choice, but try and stay calm."

Irma was about to retort, when Hay Lin gave her a look that said, 'She's right, you know', and she kept quiet.

"Mr. Longbottom, what who's in the right here?" Caleb asked.

'Good, Neville'll tell him everything.' Irma thought with a smirk.

The Slytherins gave Neville a threatening look, and Neville stammered, "I got stuck in the trick stair, and the Slytherins came and start to…" He paused. "…Make fun of me. Then the Ravenclaws came and tried to help me." Neville said in a shakey voice.

"All right then. Twenty points from Slytherin and you can each take a detention. I'll talk to Professor Snape about your punishment." Caleb said. "Now on your way."

The Slytherins glared at the Ravenclaws, and stalked off.

Irma went over to Neville and pulled him out of the stair. "You should be more careful."

Caleb and Cornelia walked off towards the third floor, leaving the Ravenclaws and Neville on the staircase.

"Well, we better get to the common room." Roger said. "There is a party waiting for us after all."

The other Ravenclaws nodded and started off.

"I'll catch up!" Irma called after them.

"Thanks." Neville muttered to her.

"No problem." Irma replied with her goofy grin. "It's Neville right?"

"Yeah. Sorry, I don't know your name." Neville said quietly.

"It's Irma. Irma Lair. Hey, if those Slytherins give you anymore more trouble, let me know and I'll put 'em in their place." Irma replied. "Well, I better go, my friends are waiting for me. It was nice to meet you, even if it could have been under smoother circumstances."

"It was nice to meet you too." Neville said.

"Seeya around." Irma said with a wink, and walked off after the other Ravenclaws.

"Yeah…" Neville muttered. "Irma Lair, huh?"

**End Chapter Eighteen**


	19. Valentine's Day

**Disclaimer:**I do not own W.i.t.c.h. or Harry Potter. If I did, the epilogue wouldn't exist.

**Chapter Nineteen**

**Valentine's Day**

Another month came and went, January giving way to February, the chill ebbing very little and the sun shinning more.

It was a week before Valentine's Day and Will started to feel a little lonely as she was aware of more students holding hands in the halls, or kissing in the library, and even most of her friends seemed to be getting boyfriends.

Hay Lin and Seamus were spending lots of time together, and Hay Lin had told the others that Seamus had already asked her out on a date on the next Hogsmeade weekend trip, which just happened to be on Valentine's Day.

Cornelia had told Will and Elyon that she wouldn't be around Valentine's Day either as Caleb was taking her to Meridian to spend the day, and Will and Elyon had passed thing information on to Hay Lin, Irma, and Taranee.

Lavender and Pavarti and dates with their new boyfriends from Hufflepuff house, who, like Lavender and Pavarti's last six boyfriends from that year, where Quidditch players.

It was starting to seem like the only three sixth year girls in the whole school who didn't have dates where Irma, Will, and Taranee (although it wasn't true), so they all planned to go to Hogsmede together and have a girls day out.

At first Elyon had said she was going to go with them, but the next day she had told Will that something had come up, and she wouldn't be able to go with them (Will thought it had something to do with Malfoy, but Elyon wouldn't give any details, and Will, thinking it best, didn't say anything to the others).

At the rate her social life at Hogwarts was going, Will, Irma, and Taranee thought they'd never have dates, let alone a boyfriend again.

* * *

Since his encounter in the forest with Cedric, Harry had been thinking almost nonstop about what he had said, and deiced on three things.

One, he wouldn't be so quick to believe anything this Cedric person said, as he didn't know anything about him, and Harry remembered all too well what had happened last time he was too hasty to believe something.

Two, he wouldn't let Ron and Hermione know anything about this, he didn't want to drag them into this or make them worry.

Three, he was going to ask Will to go to Hogsmeade with him on Valentine's Day.

He didn't know why he suddenly thought about her every time he was thinking over what Cedric had said, but Harry had made up his mind that he was going to ask her.

Problem was that she was always with someone.

She was usually with Cornelia and Elyon, and when she wasn't with them, she was with Irma, Hay Lin, and Taranee or she was with Professor Lin and Professor Green.

"It's like the fourth year all over again." Dean Thomas groaned one day when all the dateless boys were sitting around the Gryffindor common room.

"They expect us to ask them out, especially at Valentine's Day, but they make it so hard for us." Ron replied, from his place on the floor, playing with a chess set.

"You have a date, so why are you hanging around with us dateless guys?" Neville asked, sitting down on the stairs leading up to the boy's dorm.

"It makes me feel better about myself knowing that there are bigger losers in this school than me." Ron answered with a grin.

Harry and Dean, who were sitting on the biggest couch, threw pillows at Ron, who fell over and knocked over his chess set.

"Hey, that's Fred's chess set!" Ron exclaimed. "He'll kill me if it breaks!"

"Where's Seamus?" Neville asked. "Does he have a date?"

"Yep, with Hay Lin. I'm surprised you didn't know, they've been together since Christmas." Dean replied lazily.

"Hay Lin, isn't she one of Cornelia and Will's friends?" Neville asked.

"Her best friend is Irma Lair, and don't tell me you don't know who she is, you've been following her like a puppy all week." Dean said, lying back with a smirk.

"I have not!" Neville snapped frowning.

"According to Hermione, she's the one who set those bats lose in Trelawney's classroom. Apparently only Hermione knows it was her, but not even she can prove it 'cause the only person she saw near around the classroom when she was patrolling that day was Hay Lin, and she was alone and not near the trap door." Ron explained.

"But then how does she know it was Irma?" Harry asked.

Ron shrugged. "I dunno, maybe it's a girl thing."

"Or a Hermione thing." Dean added, glancing wearily towards the girl's staircase, as if afraid Hermione would come down at any second and yell at him and the other boys because of the conversation topic.

Colin Creevey, who was sitting by a window, fixing his camera, and had been listening to the conversation, noticed this, and said, "I wouldn't worry about getting caught. None of the girls are here, they're all in library studying for the big Charms test tomorrow."

"Hey Colin, do you have a date for this weekend?" Ron asked, expecting the fifth year to gloomily say no.

Harry exchanged a nervous glance with Dean, both of them knowing the answer to this.

"I'm going with Ginny, didn't she tell you?" Colin said, putting down his camera so he could give the discussion his full attention.

"What! You're going with my sister!" Ron yelled, jumping to his feet, and knocking the chess set to the floor again.

Colin inched back against the wall. "Errr… yeah. I thought she told you."

Ron frowned and knelt down to pick up the chess pieces again. "I swear that she doesn't tell me anything anymore." He muttered.

Harry deiced this would not be a good time to tell Ron that he'd known about Ginny and Colin seeing each other for about a week, after being told by Will, who had been told by Ginny herself.

Dean, however did not think of it that way, and said, "Taranee told me about it yesterday, after Ginny told her. I would've told you, but I thought you already knew."

"And Irma told me about it last week." Neville added.

"You mean she told Taranee Cook and Irma Lair, but not me, her older brother?" Ron asked, clearly trying to keep his voice under control. "Who else did she tell?"

"Relax Ron, it's probably a girl thing." Harry replied. "Ginny most likely just wanted some advice or just to talk to another girl about it."

Ron sighed. "Girls."

Harry, Colin, Neville, and Dean agreed, by sighing in unison, "Girls."

* * *

Defense Against the Dark Arts class had just ended and everyone was packing their school bags with their supplies so they could go to their next lesson, which thankfully didn't start for another twenty minutes.

Harry hurriedly stuffed his books into his bag, told Ron he'd meet him in Flitwick's classroom, and then walked down the to a row of seats a few rows toward the front.

Will was standing by a desk in the second row, talking to Taranee as both girls put their things away. Will noticed Harry coming toward them, smiled at him, waved, and told Taranee she'd see her later, and walked over to Harry. "Hi Harry." She greeted him.

"Will, I was wondering if I could ask you something." Harry replied.

"I wanted to ask you something too."

"Oh, you go first then."

"No, you brought it up."

"You sure?"

"Yep."

"Okay then." Harry paused. "Will, um, it's Valentine's Day this Saturday right?"

"Last time I checked."

"Would you happen to have a date?" Harry asked.

"No, what about you?"

"I don't have one either, so I was wondering if you- if you'd like- would you- would you like to go to Hogsmeade together?" Harry stammered, wondering why it was as hard to ask a girl this sort of thing as it had been two years ago.

"Like a date?" Will asked, blushing and giving Harry a strangely dreamy look, which he hoped was a good sign.

"Yes. A date." Harry replied firmly.

"Well, I would be happy to go with you to Hogsmeade." Will said.

"Really."

"Yeah, of course." Will said, smiling.

Harry returned the smile. "Why don't we meet at the school gate at one o'clock on Saturday?"

Will nodded. "Sounds good. Well, we better hurry, Charms starts in ten minutes and I don't want to get a detention."

"Same goes for me. Would you like to walk there together?"

Will smiled again, her brown eyes twinkling. "May as well. We're both going there anyway."

So Harry and Will left the classroom, and headed up to the second floor.

"Wait, you said you wanted to ask me something." Harry said as they were climbing up the second floor.

"Oh right." Will said.

"Well, what was it?" Harry asked.

"Nothing much, just the same thing you asked me." Will answered, running a hand through her short red hair.

"You were going to ask me out?"

"Why not? It's not the seventeen hundreds when girls were timid and stayed home sewing all day is it?" Will replied with a grin.

Harry chuckled. "I guess not."

* * *

"What! You're backing out too!" Irma cried jumping to her feet and sending both her potions and astronomy textbooks flying.

"Irma, not so loud. People are staring." Taranee begged.

All six girls were sitting in the courtyard after their last class, doing as much homework as they could before dinner.

Will had taken this opportunity to tell Irma and Taranee that she wouldn't be going to Hogsmeade with them, and Irma hadn't liked this news very much.

"Well, why are you backing out?" Irma asked, folding her arms. "Hay Lin was never going to come, Cornelia made other plans early on, Elyon said she can't come not long after, and now you're letting us know last minute."

"Something came up, that's all." Will replied, hoping Irma wouldn't question her further, but knew that, being Irma, she would.

"What something?" Irma asked.

"Fine. If you must know, Harry asked me to go out with him that day." Will answered gruffly.

"Harry? Harry Potter? The Harry Potter asked you out?" Cornelia said, putting down her History of Magic essay and looking over at Will with a small smirk.

"How many Harry Potter's do we know?" Will replied, sarcastically.

"Okay then Taranee, it's just you and me." Irma sighed. "Unless you back out too."

"Me back out? What if you back out?" Taranee asked.

"How am I supposed to get a date in under forty eight hours?" Irma said.

"Will did." Elyon pointed out, not looking up from her copy of 'Crystal Gazing, 6th level'.

"Yeah, well Harry's had a crush on Will since October." Irma replied dully.

"And how do you know that?" Will snapped.

Irma shrugged. "A girl has her way of knowing things."

"When you do go to Hogsmeade, try to stay out of trouble." Cornelia said, now flipping through the pages of a thick potions book. "Hermione told me all about the bats in Trelawney's tower, and I know it was you, I don't know how you did it, but I know it was you."

"I had nothing to do with it!" Hay Lin suddenly burst out.

Everyone looked over at her, and Hay Lin clapped her hands over her month, and then looked over at Irma, who was grinning sheepishly.

"You had Hay Lin turn you invisible, didn't you?" Will asked, already knowing the answer.

Irma only nodded, grinning a little less.

Will sighed. "One of these days we're gonna blow our cover if this keeps up."

"Okay, I promise not to do anything fun at Hogsmeade." Irma said.

"Irma, that's not what I meant." Will replied.

"Fine, I promise not to do anything really, really fun."

"Irma…"

"I promise not to do anything stupid or anything that involves magic." Irma sighed.

"Thank you." Will said.

"And we don't need to worry about Taranee doing anything." Cornelia added, with a tiny smirk.

Taranee smiled proudly. "It's good to know I'm trust worthy."

"And I'm not?" Irma asked.

Everyone exchanged glances, then said in unison, "No", which made Irma put on a false pout.

* * *

"Are you sure I look okay?" Will asked for the tenth time, nervously trying to straighten her hair.

"For the tenth time, yes, you look fine." Irma assured her.

It was Saturday afternoon, and Will was standing by the Hogwarts gate with Irma and Taranee, waiting for Harry.

Cornelia had left early with Caleb for Meridian, leaving the other girls a note saying she'd be back around four o'clock, Elyon had disappeared after breakfast that morning (Lavender Brown claimed that she had seen Elyon by the lake with Malfoy, but Will wasn't sure if she believed Lavender, as she was one of the biggest gossips in school), and Hay Lin had left with Seamus five minutes ago.

"Well, I hope he gets here soon, I'm freezing." Irma snapped, shivering.

"You guys don't have to wait with me." Will replied, smoothing out her jeans.

"And miss out on seeing Harry Potter walk away with his true love?" Irma teased.

Will shoot Irma a glare.

"Irma, stop teasing her." Taranee scolded, cleaning her glasses on her cloak. "This isn't any different than when Cornelia teases you about Martin."

Irma frowned. "Don't bring him up around here, it'll make it seem like I'm not available. I'd actually like a date while I'm at school here."

"Martin wouldn't like to hear that." Taranee stated, putting her glasses back on.

"You're asking for it, Taranee." Irma warned, glaring at Taranee.

Taranee just smiled innocently, which made Irma roll her eyes.

"Would you two knock cut it out?" Will asked. "Here comes Harry."

"Really? Hey Har- OW!" Irma started, but ended in a yelp when Taranee elbowed her in the ribs.

"Come on Irma, Will's nervous enough, don't make it worse." Taranee hissed. "Now let's go."

"All right." Irma said, not wanting to ruin her friend's date before it even began. "We'll be off. Come on Taranee, let's go to the candy store."

"Bye Will, good luck." Taranee said with a wink.

Before Will could reply, Irma and Taranee were walking down to the village, speaking in hushed voices.

Will shrugged, and turned to face Harry, who was only seven feet away now.

"Hi Will." He said when he got over to her.

"Hello Harry." Will replied, blushing ever so slightly.

"So, where would you like to go first?" Harry asked.

"Maybe we should go to the Three Broomsticks, for a butterbeer or something." Will answered.

"Okay, sure." Harry said.

Harry and Will spent the walk to the village in silence, not knowing what to say to each other, but many times they would both open their mouths to say something, think better of it, and turned away, embarrassed.

When they got to the Three Broomsticks, they found a group of Slytherins hanging around outside, scaring away first years from every house, and keeping people from the others houses away by bullying them.

Will stopped Harry from going any farther by gently grabbing his arm, and said, "Let's go for a walk in the woods. I don't want any trouble with those Slytherin snobs, they'll probably just pick on us, and it probably nicer in the forest than in town."

Harry nodded. "You're probably right, Malfoy's most likely to be in there."

Will highly doubted that to be true, but she did not say a word on her thoughts.

* * *

"I wonder why all those Slytherin's were hanging around the Three Broomsticks." Will said, brushing snow out of her hair.

"They probably took it over for the day. I'll bet Madam Rosemertta really loves that." Harry replied with a snort.

"If that's the case, then I feel sorry for her." Will agreed. "Should we tell a teacher?"

"Nah, as long as they're not really bugging anyone, let them have their fun. Madam Rosemertta'll chase them out if they get on her nerves." Harry answered.

"If you say- WHOA!" Will tripped over a tree root sticking out of the ground, fell into Harry, and they both fell to the ground, both lying on their sides facing each other.

Both teenagers blushed very deep red, and felt their hearts pounding in their chests as they stared at each other.

Then impulse got the better of Harry, and he kissed Will ever so gentely on the lips while she let him.

A few seconds Harry realized what he was doing and stood up quickly.

"Sorry Will, I don't know what came over me, what I was thinking," Harry stammered. "I'll leave if you want me-"

But Harry was cut off when Will, who had gotten to her feet, kissed Harry, who was surprised but accepted the kiss.

Will knew her heart that words weren't necessary at after the kiss, but after they pulled away, she said, "I really like you Harry."

Harry smiled a smile that reached to his green eyes. "I really like you too."

The slipped their hands together and walked off through the woods, both feeling complete glee.

**End Chapter Nineteen**

A/N: I switched it around so that Harry kissed Will first, which just makes more sense.


	20. The Discovery

**Disclaimer:**I do not own W.i.t.c.h. or Harry Potter.

**Chapter Twenty**

**The Discovery**

The day after the Hogsmeade trip was a field day for rumors about who was dating who, who had turned down who, and how long this couple and that couple would last.

The guardians did their best to avoid these rumors, as none of them, not even Cornelia, liked it at all, and they simply wanted a quiet day, so they all spent the day in their house common rooms.

In the Gryffindor common room, it was only Will, Cornelia, Harry, Ron, and Hermione who were sitting around enjoying the quiet.

After the tripping incident in the forest, Will and Harry had continued their walk, while holding hands. Yes, there had been some silences, but they were no longer awkward for either of them, which made Will even more glad that their feelings were out in the open and that Harry had asked Will to be his girlfriend, and she had of course said yes.

Eventually Harry and Will had gone to the Three Broomsticks, and found that most of the Slytherins had left, but they saw Mafloy was sitting in a corner with Pansy Parkinson, and that Malfoy looked very bored and annoyed, which obviously meant he was not with Elyon.

When it came time to go back to the castle, Harry and Will walked back up to the Entrance Hall, and shared one more short kiss before parting ways, Will going up to the common room to find Cornelia, and Harry going to the courtyard to meet up with Ron and Hermione.

Unfortunately Will hadn't gotten a moment alone with Harry since then, but Will was glad to have some quiet time with friends.

"…and poor Peter had to clean the whole mess up." Hermione was saying to Cornelia from the spot by the fire where they were talking.

"It sounds like that boy's feet are too big for the rest of him." Cornelia replied.

Will had no idea what Hermione and Cornelia were talking about, as she was busy wondering where Elyon was, the her book was pretending to read just a cover up to make it look like she was reading so no one would ask her anything, and where she had been all day yesterday. Will hadn't even seen her come to bed that night, but when she woke up in the morning, she knew Elyon must've been there as her bed had been slept in, but Cornelia, Hermione, Lavender, and Pavarti hadn't seen her come in either.

All the guardians had done some asking about Elyon, and Cornelia had worked up the nerve to ask Malfoy if he'd seen her, but everyone said they hadn't seen her since the day before Valentine's.

Will was ripped from her thoughts when the portrait hole opened, and none other than Elyon climbed through, looking pale and serious.

"Elyon!" Cornelia cried, springing to her feet. "Where have you been! The girls and I have been worried about you!"

"I'll explain later, right now we have to see Professor Lin." Elyon said urgently. "We need to get Irma, Hay Lin, and Taranee too."

"Why? What's going on?" Will asked, setting her thick book down.

"Later, we need to go now." Elyon replied.

Will got up reluctantly. "Okay, okay, I'm coming."

Elyon, however, had already climbed out the portrait hole, not hearing Will's response.

Cornelia gave Will a confused look and shrugged before following.

What could be so important? Was something happening in Candracar, or Meridian?

Will looked at Harry, and gave him a quick smile. "I'm sure we'll be back soon." Then she hurried after her friends.

"I wonder what's with them." Ron said.

"So do I, but it's none of our business." Hermione replied, indicating that she considered the matter closed.

"Hey, Hermione, wanna play a game of Chess?" Ron asked.

"No, you always win against me in about four or five minute." Hermione answered with a laugh. "How about a game of Gobstones instead, at least I'll have a chance at beating you at that?"

"Fine, but don't think you'll win so easily at that either."

Harry was unaware of Hermione and Ron's talk, and was trying to read a charms textbook, but kept finding himself wondering exactly what was so important, even though he knew he shouldn't be.

* * *

"Okay, what's the big emergency?" Irma asked in a bored tone as everyone sat around in Yan Lin's office.

"Yeah, what's the big rush? Is something wrong in Meridian or Candracar?" Cornelia added.

"Not really something wrong, but according to the Oracle, someone from Earth crossed over to Metamoor, and is in the Meridian prison right now." Elyon explained. "I was with Vathek yesterday, questioning the man, whose name is Sirius Black, but that's all we got out of him."

"And why wasn't I told about this yesterday when I was in Meridian?" Caleb asked, rather coolly.

"It's a very simple reason, actually." Elyon answered. "You were on a date with Cornelia, you promised it would just be you and her the whole day, so I made sure that you kept your word. If I had told you, you would've run off to the palace in a second, and Cornelia would've had to come back here by herself."

"I would not have." Caleb insisted.

"You would too have." Elyon argued.

"Stop lying, you would have." Cornelia said, folding her arms and smirking at him.

Caleb frowned, folded his arms as well and didn't reply.

"Sirius Black, I remember reading about him in History of Magic once." Taranee said.

"Only you would remember anything from History of Magic." Irma joked, leaning her chair back against the wall..

Taranee smirked, and said, "I'll take that as a compliment, but I don't remember what Professor Bins said about him."

"Don't try to, all that the history books say about Sirius Black is a lie." Yan Lin replied, speaking for the first time. "The books say he was a servant of Lord Voldemort, but he was not, they say that he killed thirteen people with one curse, but he was innocent, they state that he is responsible for the deaths of Lily and James Potter, but he is not."

"What? Lily and James Potter?" Will said. "Those were the names of Harry's parents."

"Yes, they were Harry's parents, and Sirius Black was one of their closest friends, as well as Harry's godfather." Yan Lin answered. "He was framed by one a man he thought was his friend."

"But… Harry told me his godfather was killed last year." Will said. "And he never did saw what his godfather's name was."

"Yes, Sirius Black is thought to be dead, he was supposedly killed in the Ministry of Magic by his cousin. Harry probably didn't tell you his godfather's name because he thought that you would think Sirius Black is a criminal, thus you would think he was supporting a murderer." Yan Lin explained.

"I still don't understand what the big deal is." Hay Lin said. "Sirius Black fell through the veil, he's been in Meridian for just under a year, so why not just bring him back?"

"I wish it were that simple." Elyon sighed, twirling one of her braids. "I asked the Oracle the very same question, and he told me that we would have to erase his memories of Meridian so that he wouldn't tell anyone, but then there's the fact that everyone here thinks he's dead, and there's no way we can alter the memories of that many people. Besides, everyone in the wizarding world thinks he's a murderer, so if we brought him back, we'd just be sentencing him to a life time in Azkaban."

"Oh." Hay Lin replied. "I didn't think of that."

"But, if that's not possible, what can we do?" Taranee asked.

"The Oracle believes he deserves comfort, so I'm giving him a house on the palace grounds, away from the questions stares of my people." Elyon answered.

"The Oracle also asked me to tell you that he wishes us to go speak with him."

"What? But why?" Cornelia questioned.

"I don't know that myself, but I'm sure he has reasons." Elyon replied. "He always does, doesn't he?"

Will sighed. "I guess we're taking a trip to Candracar."

Irma, Cornelia, Hay Lin, and Taranee all groaned.

"Hey, I don't want to go on a mission anymore than you guys do, but it's our duty as guardians to do as the Oracle asks, and he thinks this is important." Will said.

"Besides, I happen to know that the Oracle is very glad that you girls were invited to attend school here, but I also know that if you reject your guardians, he will strip you of your powers and then you won't have much reason to stay here." Yan Lin explained in a calm voice.

"Okay, okay, point taken!" Hay Lin, Irma, Taranee, and Cornelia exclaimed in unison, panicking.

"So when do we leave?" Hay Lin asked sheepishly.

Yan Lin smiled. "I'm glad you are so enthusiastic."

* * *

"Ah, honorable Yan Lin." The Oracle greeted with a smile. "And the guardians and Queen Elyon, but why are you all still in your school uniforms?"

"We couldn't just transform at school, someone would've found out." Irma replied.

"Well, we may as well transform now." Taranee said.

There were flashes of magenta, blue, red, green, silver, and white light, and after the flashes, the five guardians stood in their uniforms, and Elyon was in her white royal robes.

"I don't want to sound rude, Oracle, but why did you call us on a mission on our day off?" Cornelia asked.

"I understand your desire to know, Cornelia, and it is not rudeness, just human curiosity." The Oracle replied, with a pleasant smile. "I am not sure I can tell you girls the importance of this matter."

"The matter is unspeakably important, we got that. Can we move on please?" Irma said, rolling her eyes.

"Very well," The Oracle said. "I can't tell you much, I believe you must see and speak to Sirius Black to understand."

"How long do you want us to stay there?" Will asked.

"As long is required for you to know what the problem is, for that is the first step to fixing the problem." The Oracle answered. "We can decide on a solution later."

"Of course Oracle." Will said with a bow of her head, "We will do our best."

The Oracle looked at Will with kind smiling eyes. "I know you will guardians, I know you will."

* * *

"Queen Elyon, are you sure you want to be alone with the prisoner?" Caleb asked as he led he way down the dark corridor of the dungeon.

"Those were the Oracle's wishes." Elyon replied. "Besides, I'll have the guardians with me."

"You worry too much Caleb." Cornelia teased, ruffling Caleb's hair.

"I do not." Caleb replied, trying to tidy his naturally messy hair, but couldn't help giving a small smile, which only Cornelia saw.

"Any idea what we're going to say to this guy?" Irma asked.

Will looked over her shoulder at Irma. "Err… I haven't given it much thought."

"Well maybe we should give it some thought." Taranee suggested.

"Or maybe we should just wing it." Hay Lin said cheerfully. "I mean it's worked before hasn't it?"

"We're gotten lucky every time, because we wing just about everything." Will said.

"This is his cell." Elyon interrupted, stopping in front of a cell door. "Now, remember, he doesn't know anything about where he is or what's going on, so he's confused, and seeing you guys might make him more confused."

"Should we change back then?" Hay Lin asked.

Elyon shook her head. "I don't think so. The Oracle didn't say anything about it did he?"

"No, besides, it'd probably be best to be in our guardian forms, just in case." Will agreed.

"Caleb, wait outside the door please, we shouldn't be long." Elyon ordered her captain of the guard.

"All right, but if I hear any trouble, then I'm coming inside." Caleb replied, folding his arms.

"Of course." Elyon sighed, rolling her eyes. "Now would you kindly open the door?"

Caleb obeyed, but spent the whole time he was fumbling with the keys muttering things like "you're getting into more than you can handle", and "they're still just girls".

Cornelia and Irma both frowned and folded their arms at the last part, but surprisingly didn't say anything.

When Caleb straightened up, after unlocking the numerous locks on the door, and, with Elyon in the lead, the girls slipped into the cell.

Cornelia, who was the last in the single file in to go inside, gave Caleb a reassuring smile before going inside, and Caleb reluctantly closed the door behind her.

Once inside, seeing how the room was dark, Taranee took a torch, lit it with a snap of her fingers, and placed it in a holder in the wall.

With light now filling the small room, the girls could now see the outline of a man standing by the only window in the room with his back to them.

"Mr. Black." Elyon said.

The man turned, but no one could see his face because the shadows in the room were covering it, but the girls knew he could see their faces, which was exactly what the wanted, as they hoped he might trust them more quickly if he saw they were only teenage girls.

He seemed to examine them for a moment before he said, in a gruff voice, "Yes?"

"I am Queen Elyon, I spoke with you yesterday, and these are my friends the guardians." Elyon answered, sounding as strong and regal as she could. "We only wish to ask you a few questions, and then you may ask some questions of your own, as I'm sure you have many."

"Hold on just a minute, young lady, I'm not answering any questions until you answer some of mine." Sirius stated.

Elyon looked surprised for a moment, but then smiled. "I suppose that's only fair, after all you've been through. Very well, ask away."

It was Sirius's turn to be surprised, although they couldn't see his face, they could tell he was by the way he seem to stiffen up and be at a loss for words. Apparently he hadn't thought they would give in so easily.

"Well, where am I exactly?" He asked.

Elyon paused a minute, before answering, "In the prison of the royal palace of Meridian."

"And what is Meridian?"

"The capital city of Metamoor, my kingdom."

"Metamoor?"

"Metamoor is on the other side of the veil, and Earth is on the opposite side. You, unintentionally of course, fell through the veil last summer, and into this world." Elyon explained.

"Damn." Sirius said dully. "I'm going to have to really kill Bellatrix this time."

Everyone was puzzled by this statement, but didn't question him.

"And who are you five, the five who are just standing there?" Sirius asked, stepping into the light where the girls could see his face.

He had tangled, long black hair, that fell down past his shoulders, and he had a stern face, but kind eyes.

Will got the impression that, if not for his matted hair and dirty face, this man would be quite handsome.

"Well, who are you?" Sirius repeated gruffly.

"We are the guardians of the veil and it's our job to keep Metamoor and Earth safe." Will answered, taking a step forward.

"But you're just teenagers."

"Yes, well, all the guardians have been."

"When we're not on duty, we're normal teens, plus some magical powers." Cornelia answered, stepping forward.

"If you can call anyone who goes to Hogwarts normal." Irma added.

"Hogwarts? You go to Hogwarts?" Sirius asked, an urgent tone in his voice. "Do you know Harry Potter?"

Will opened her mouth to say something, but found that she couldn't speak and her face was heating up.

"Yeah, we know him." Taranee said, giving Will a look that said, 'some of us better than others'.

'How did you find out?" Will thought, knowing Taranee could hear her perfectly well.

'I read minds, remember?' Taranee replied. 'I won't say anything to the others if you don't want me to.'

'That would be ideal, thank you.' Will thought hotly.

"Yes, I happen to know him very well." Will said. "He and I are… Well, I guess you should know since you're his godfather. Harry and I are-" She stopped, not knowing what to say.

"In love?" Sirius questioned, a small smile forming on his lips.

"I guess you could say that." Will replied, blushing. 'Could it really be love? Could I really love Harry?' She thought.

"When did this happen?" Cornelia asked, grinning at Will. "I mean, we knew you liked him, but when did you actually admit it?"

Will blushed even more. "Can we talk about this later in private?"

Sirius seemed to understand that Will was not comfortable with the topic so he said, "What are your names? Starting with the red head? You look like a Weasley, but just a little bit."

"Yeah, I've been told that before." Will answered. "I'm Will Vandom."

"And that would be short for something, right?"

"Yes."

Sirius looked at her, obviously expecting to hear her first name.

Will sighed. "Wilma, but I prefer to be called Will."

"At least your name's not Nymphadora. Poor Tonks hates her first name." Sirius replied.

"That's Tonks's first name?" Hay Lin said with a giggle.

"Oh, you know Tonks do you? Don't ever call her by her first name, she'll probably put a jinx on you." Sirius warned. "Now, were the rest of your names?"

"The name's Irma Lair."

"My name's Taranee Cook."

"I'm Cornelia Hale."

"And I'm Hay Lin!"

"You five can't be older than seventeen if you're going to Hogwarts." Sirius stated.

"I turned seventeen in January, Elyon's seventeen too, Cornelia's sixteen, and Irma, Taranee, and Hay Lin are fifteen." Will explained.

"I'm curious to know what houses you're in."

"Irma, Taranee, and I are in Ravenclaw." Hay Lin said, with her famous grin.

"And Cornelia, will and I are in Gryffindor." Elyon added.

"Tell me, is that slime Snape still a teacher?"

Will lost the conversation at this point, as she began thinking about how the whole interview had changed from uptight and chilling to warm and friendly, just because they had mentioned they went to Hogwarts.

However, her pleasant thoughts were brought to a crashing halt when she heard Sirius say, "How is everyone back home? When can I see them?"

The room fell silent, and that chill that had seemed to have disappeared was back again.

It was Cornelia who had the courage to break the silence. "I'm sorry, sir, you can't see them." She said quietly and sadly.

"What do you mean I can't see them?"

"I wish I could arrange it, but I can't. Everyone thinks you're dead, so if you show up suddenly like nothing happened, well, it would be strange and frightening." Elyon said, bowing her head so that her bangs covered her eyes. "I'm sorry Mr. Black, I really am."

"But… something did happen and I didn't die, I came here." Sirius protested.

"No one from Earth can know about Metamoor, aside from the few who the Oracle, the one the guardians take orders from, trusts." Will explained sadly. "The former guardians, the few friends who we told, and our parents, but no one else can know about us."

"What about Harry? I can't at least see him, can't I?"

It was Will's turn to lower her head.

"No, not even Harry can know." She said, her voice trembling.

"I see." Sirius said, obviously disappointed. "I understand, this isn't the kind of thing that people would take lightly."

All six girls remained silent.

'This is what the Oracle wanted us to understand; that the problem is that Sirius is homesick. He misses everyone terribly. I can't imagine how he feels.' Will thought. 'I understand now, Oracle, but how do we fix this problem?'

"Just one more thing." Sirius said.

"Yes?" Elyon asked, straightening up.

"How long do I have to stay in this bloody cell?"

Elyon couldn't help but smirk at that. "I will personally see to it that you are out of here today. I'm giving you your own house on the palace grounds, where I'm sure you will be comfortable."

"Thank you." Sirius replied, sounding very glad he wouldn't have to live in a dank cell anymore.

"You're very welcome." Elyon said with a nod. "By the way, should you need anything, I will be here the rest of the day, but I will be returning to Hogwarts by sundown until next month."

"And the rest of you?"

"We'll be going back shortly, there are things we need to do." Will answered. "Good bye Mr. Black."

"Wait a moment, would I talk to you alone Will?" Sirius asked.

"It's okay with me." Will said, shrugging.

"Okay, we'll just go on ahead." Cornelia replied. "We'll be waiting in the throne room with Professor Lin."

"You called her Professor Lin." Hay Lin pointed out as she and the other walked to the door.

"I guess it's a habit now." Cornelia said.

As coon as the door closed and the other girls foot steps had died away, Sirius said, "Could I ask you a favor Will?"

"Sure, I guess."

"If you can't tell Harry about me, can you at least tell me how he's doing every once in a while?" Sirius asked.

Will nodded. "Yes, of course, I'd be happy too. I could come back here with Elyon once a month and let you know what's going on."

"Thanks." Sirius paused, and Will could tell there was something else he wanted to tell her.

"Is there something else?" She asked.

"Harry doesn't know about any of this does he?"

"No, he doesn't. The only people who know about us at Hogwarts are Professor Dumbledore and the rest of the staff." Will answered. "Oh, and I suppose the Ministry knows about us."

"Are you planning to tell him?"

Will froze. She hadn't even thought about this at all, not even the slightest bit.

Sirius seemed to read her mind. "I can tell you haven't thought about it."

"No, I didn't. I don't even know if I can tell him." Will replied. 'I told Matt, but those were under completely different circumstances."

"I've learned the hard way that if you don't tell that truth, it had a way of telling itself, and you might not like happens afterwards." Sirius warned.

"But we just went on our first date. I don't even know if I really love him yet." Will protested, more to herself that to Sirius.

"I'm not trying to talk you into telling him, all I'm saying is that he will most likely find out eventually, and it's better you tell him than someone else." Sirius replied.

"I'll- I'll keep that in mind." Will stammered. "I better be getting back to school now."

"Don't let me keep you, I've had my say."

Will walked slowly to the door, paused, then turned and said, "He really misses you, Harry does I mean." And with that, she slipped out the door into the hall, and started to walk up to the throne room, thinking hard about what Sirius had said to her.

* * *

"Well, that didn't take long. You were only gone about half an hour." Ron stated, as Will and Cornelia climbed into the common room. "I thought you'd be gone longer, considering how Elyon was calling whatever you left for an emergency."

"Oh, it's take long to fix, it wasn't as bad as she made out to be. Professor Lin made a mistake grading our last papers, that's all." Will said, sitting down in an armchair. 'Thank god for Candracar's ability to alter time.' She added in thought.

"Elyon's always has been stressed about her grades." Cornelia added, sitting down on the floor with a book.

"Where is Elyon anyway?" Hermione asked, lowering her knitting. (Which Will and Cornelia could tell was going to be another hat for a house elf.)

"She's still talking to Professor Lin." Cornelia answered, not looking up from her book.

Hermione cast a suspicious glance at Cornelia before returning to her knitting.

"Where's Harry?" Will asked.

"Oh, I dunno. I didn't even hear him leave." Ron replied, stretching out on the couch.

Just as Ron finished talking, Harry came down the boys' staircase, grumbling about something.

"Hi Harry." Will greeted.

Harry jumped and whirled around to look at her. "Oh, hello Will. Could I talk to you?"

"Sure thing." Will replied, standing up.

Harry took Will's hand, lead her out of the common room and down the hall of the seventh floor until they reached a hanging tapestry, where Harry pulled Will behind it, where there was a small marble room.

"What is it?" Will asked, knowing from Harry's face that something was wrong.

"Remember I told you about my aunt, uncle, and cousin yesterday?" Harry snapped.

Will nodded.

"Look at this." Harry said hotly, slapping a letter into Will's hands.

Will gave Harry a curious and sympathetic look, before unfolding the letter and reading it.

_'Potter,_

_Your aunt Petunia and I have agreed to let your aunt Marge live with us until she gets something's in her life straightened out, as such, she will most likely be here when you and Dudley return home for the summer._

_I want no tricks when you get home, which includes nothing like what you pulled last time she was at our house. Understand that boy, or you'll regret it._

_Don't write back to protest because it won't work, I'm standing firm._

_I'm warning you again now that if you pull anything, you'll never go back to that freak house you call a school._

_Vernon Dursley'_

Will stared at the letter with an open mouth. "He- he would actually keep you from coming back?"

"I told he's horrible." Harry said bitterly. "It's not the first time he's threatened to keep me from coming here."

"He's- he's even worse than you said. He can't keep you from coming to school!"

"I'm sure he'd be able to find a way to keep me locked up." Harry replied.

"These people are your family?" Will said, thinking of her own family. 'Mom, my wonderful mom, my terrible dad, Mr. Collins, who's has always been so kind to me…'

"Will, are you okay?"

Will became aware that she had tears in her eyes, and she quickly wiped them away. "Yeah, I'm fine. It's just that… Hogwarts won't be the same with, and your home… it sounds so awful."

"Actually, I realized in my first year that Hogwarts is my home, and that my friends here at Hogwarts are my family." Harry admitted, blushing. "Sounds kid of dumb, huh?"

"No, it doesn't, not at all. I understand completely." Will replied. 'I mean, the girls are kind of like my sisters. After all we've been through…' She thought. "So have you shown Ron and Hermione the letter yet?"

"No, I just got it."

Will blushed. "I'm the first person you showed?"

"I guess I wanted you to be the first know about it." Harry said.

"Well, ummm… you won't be at the Dursley's very long. I mean, you're going to Bill Weasley's wedding, aren't you?" Will replied, changing the subject. 'He wanted me to be the first to know? Does he... like me more than he's told me.' She was sure was blushing like never before.

"Yes, I want to. Bill told me he really wanted me to be there." Harry answered, knowing that Will must've felt uncomfortable. "Thanks for listening, I know you probably didn't want to hear-"

"You're welcome." Will interrupted.

They both leaned forward, closed their eyes, and were about to kiss, when a shrill voice cackled, "Potter and Vandom sitting in a tree-"

"Go away Peeves!" Harry yelled, turning to face the poltergeist so suddenly that poor Will lost her balance and fell into Harry, knocking him over, and the both of them landed on the floor with a thud.

Peeves cackled and flew off, satisfied with his work there, and went off to cause trouble somewhere else.

Harry and Will sat up and dusted themselves off.

"Sorry Harry." Will said, straightening her skirt. "I sure hope we don't fall into each other every time we're about to kiss."

Harry laughed and pulled her into a kiss, and this time they we not interrupted.

Sirius's words of warning echoed in Will's head, but she dismissed them.

'I will tell him.' Will thought, as she pulled away from the kiss and found herself wrapped in Harry's arms. 'But not yet.'

**End Chapter Twenty**

A/N: Sorry if Harry and Will were a little OOC in that romance scene at the end. It's hard for me to write romance and keep everyone in character, but I try my hardest.


	21. Unwanted Feelings

**Disclaimer:**I do not own W.i.t.c.h. or Harry Potter.

**Chapter Twenty-One**

**Unwanted Feelings**

The first week of March ushered in slightly warmer weather, but only slightly.

Almost all the students were still wearing their scarves, mittens, and hats on the school grounds and to potions class, where it seemed colder than the outside.

It seemed to all the Gryffindor sixth years that Snape purposely kept the classroom freezing just for the enjoyment of seeing the students huddling around their cauldrons, shivering.

It was an afternoon right after potions class when all the Gryffindor and Slytherin sixth years were eagerly coming out of the dungeons, and Will was talking to Cornelia and Elyon about their homework.

"Am I the only one who noticed that Snape gave us more homework than the Slytherins?" Cornelia snapped.

"No, you aren't the only one." Will replied. "I've got Quidditch practice all this week too, so I don't know when I'll be able to finish all this homework."

"Maybe it's a good thing I didn't try out for the Quidditch team after all." Elyon said, more to herself than anyone else.

Will frowned a little and said, "You know, Katie Bell is graduating this year. One of you should try out for chaser next year."

"I already told you, I'm not a 'sporty girl'." Cornelia replied.

"I've got the job of commentating the matches, which I am getting paid for, by the way." Elyon said.

"Oh come on, it's just like soccer. You guys love soccer." Will answered.

"It sure as hell is not anything like-" Cornelia started.

"Excuse me." A voice behind them interrupted.

All three girls stopped talking, and spun around to see whom the speaker was.

It was none other than Cho Chang.

'Oh great.' Will thought bitterly. 'What does she want?'

"Will, I was wondering if I could talk to you." Cho said. "Alone, if that's all right."

"I don't think so Cho, we've got Care of Magical Creatures next, and I'd hate to be late." Will replied, trying to give her voice a falsely sweet tone.

"But it doesn't start for another half hour." Cho said.

"It takes a while to get all the way down to Hagrid's hut." Will insisted.

"It won't take long."

"But-"

"If you're late, we'll tell Hagrid- Professor Hagrid that you got held up." Cornelia offered.

"Cornelia, don't-" Will started.

"Oh, it's no trouble Will." Elyon interrupted. "What are friends for?"

And before Will could say anything else, Cornelia and Elyon had joined the crowd of students headed for the next classes.

'Those traitors.' Will thought hotly. 'They know how I feel about having to talk to Cho.'

"So, I understand you're close to Harry." Cho said, snapping Will's attention back to earth.

Will folded her arms. "Yeah."

"Could you tell him something for me?" Cho asked, blushing the prettiest shade of pink.

Will frowned and remained silent. 'I hate it when girls like her do that.'

"Could you please tell him… that I still like him?"

"Sorry Cho, but I can't do that." Will sighed, struggling to keep the false sweetness in her voice.

"Why not?"

"Because, in case you didn't know, Harry and I are dating." Will snapped.

Cho's eyes widened. "Dating? When did this happen?"

"Valentine's Day, if you must know." Will answered, dropping the sweet tone of voice.

"But he hardly even knows you." Cho protested.

"That's what you think."

Will was very glad the hall was now deserted, as this whole conversation would have been very embarrassing.

"I think we're done here. Now, if you'll kindly excuse me, I'm going to be late for class." Will said, turning to walk away.

"No, I don't excuse you." Cho snapped. "We're not done here."

"Really?" Will replied, not looking over she shoulder as she continued walking. "I don't see what else we could possibly have to talk about."

"Why? Why would he like you?" Cho said quietly, her voice shaking in anger. "You're not anything like me."

Will stopped, but she didn't turn. 'I think that's why he likes me. He doesn't have any expectations to live up to like he did with you.'

"I'm the prettiest girl in school, and you… you're-"

"What? I'm what?" Will asked. "Not as pretty as you, not as smart as you, not good enough for Harry?"

Cho looked surprised, but Will wasn't going to turn around, so she couldn't see.

"Harry just happens to think I am pretty, smart, and he obviously thinks I am good enough for him, or he wouldn't have asked me out in the first place." Will said.

Cho opened her mouth to say something, but Will cut her off.

"Don't give me anymore of that 'pretty girl' crap, I've had more than enough of that shoved in my face. Harry likes me for me, end of story." Will snapped. "Now, I'm going to class."

Will stormed of down the hall, hoping she wouldn't be too late for class.

Cho stood in silence for a moment before heading the same way Will had gone, very glad she had herbology next so that she would get a chance to speak to the person in question.

* * *

"Harry, could I talk to you?" Cho asked.

"I don't think this is a good time, we've got Transfiguration next, and McGonagall won't be happy if I'm late." Harry replied, looking at his watch.

"Please Harry, it'll only take a minute." Cho begged.

"Oh, fine, but only a minute." Harry said with a sigh. "What is it?"

"What's going on between you and Wilma Vandom?" Cho asked.

"Will? She and I are… close." Harry replied, beginning to wonder what Cho wanted.

"I see, I really hope I don't seem rude."

"No, it's okay." Harry said, but thought, 'You're not doing a very good job of it.'

"Could I ask you something else?" Cho said, sounding meek.

"Sure, I guess."

"When I asked Will, she said the two of you are dating. Is that true?"

"We are dating, yes." Harry answered. "Why?"

"Well… did you ever think we should give things between us another chance? That maybe we could've made things-" Cho started.

"No, no I don't think so." Harry said firmly. "I know what you're getting at, but I like Will now and that's that."

"But she's keeping something from you, I can tell."

"If there's something she doesn't want to tell me, she doesn't have to tell me." Harry said hotly, folding his arms. "It's not like I expect her to share all her secrets with me. Now I've got to go, or I'll be late for class."

"I'm not a horrible person you know, I'm not trying-"

"It doesn't matter. From what I've learned, jealousy can make anyone, no matter how nice they are, do stupid things." Harry replied, turning away, and marching off.

Cho didn't follow him; she knew it wouldn't do her any good. 'Nothing's gone right since Cedric died. If he were still alive, maybe things would be better.' Cho bit her lip, and walked down the path towards the lake.

* * *

"Aren't you coming to dinner Harry?" Hermione asked.

"No, I'm going to the common room." Harry replied, starting toward the marble staircase. "I've got some things to think over."

"See you after dinner then." Ron said, starting to walk towards the Great Hall, but found he was unable to, as Hermione had a firm grip on his arm.

"Ron, could you at least pretend you know the meaning of the word manners?" Hermione hissed in his ear.

Ron sighed and didn't say anything, knowing he'd probably make things worse for himself.

"Do you want us to bring you anything?" Hermione asked.

"No, thanks, if I get hungry I'll get someone from the kitchen." Harry said.

Hermione opened her mouth to protest, but Harry was already halfway up the stairs, so she merely went into the Great Hall, with Ron behind her.

When Harry finally climbed into the common room, he expected it to be empty, but much to his surprise, he found Will lying on a couch, glaring up at the ceiling.

"Will? Why aren't you at dinner?" Harry asked.

"Why aren't you at dinner?" Will snapped, still glaring at ceiling.

"I had… something to think about." Harry answered with a sigh, sinking into an armchair. "You weren't at any classes after potions either."

"I had things to think about too." Will replied dully.

"You know, if there's something bothering you, you can talk to me about it." Harry said gently, leaning forward in the armchair.

Will turned her head to look at him, her brown eyes devoid of emotion.

Harry stiffened. 'What in the world is she thinking? I hope she's not thinking of pummeling me.'

Finally, Will sighed and sat up, hugging her knees.

"Sorry Harry. It's just I'm not sure if I should tell you what's going on."

Harry stood up, walked over, and sat down next to Will. "You might feel better if you talked about it. Hermione always is telling me that."

Will put her feet on the floor. "Cho Chang told me to tell you something."

"Yeah?"

"She… she told me… to tell you that she still likes you." Will forced herself to say.

"Funny." Harry replied, sitting back in the couch. "She tried to tell me that you're no good for me."

Will sighed. "Maybe I'm not."

"That's not true." Harry said. "And don't believe a word she says, she's just jealous."

"Jealousy's a funny thing, isn't it?" Will mused quietly. "It makes even the nicest people do the meanest things."

"Yeah, it does."

"Harry, you don't like Cho do you?" Will asked, sounding a little hopeless.

"Nah, it's over between us, I swear." Harry answered, putting an arm around Will's shoulders. "We were… well, we were just too different."

Will laughed a little. "I would think so. She seems like she'd want a guy who's hopelessly devoted to her."

"That's what she wanted from me, and I couldn't give that to her." Harry replied. "I have other things to do."

"I know that, and I have others things going on too." Will said. "A casual relationship is what I really wanted, and I think that's what we have."

"Yeah, serious relationships feel so weird."

Will chuckled. "They can be like that."

"So everything's settled?"

Will paused. "Yeah I think that's everything."

"Good. We might just be able to make it to dinner. Wanna go?" Harry said.

"Cho will be there, undoubtedly." Will replied dully.

"All the more reason to go." Harry said. "Show her it'll be hard to break us up."

Will smiled. "Yeah."

* * *

"I know I shouldn't get enjoyment out of this, but the look on Cho's face when we walked into the Great Hall was satsifying to see." Will said grinning.

"I shouldn't be entertained by it either." Harry replied. "But I am. Poor Cho. She just can't seem to get her way.""

"Poor her? She just tried to break us up!" Will exclaimed.

"Yeah, but she lost Cedric, then things didn't work out with me, she got thrown off the Quidditch team, and now things don't work out again."

"Well, when you put it that way…"

"All right, Elyon, what did you want to see me about?" A familiar voice asked.

Will and Harry looked at each other in panic.

Malfoy.

And from the sound of it, he was just around the corner from them.

Will and Harry both backed up against the wall, and tried to be as quiet as they could.

"What's he doing up here on the seventh floor?" Will whispered.

"I don't know." Harry whispered back.

"There's something I have to tell you." Another voice said.

"That's Elyon!" Will gasped, and Harry clapped a hand over her mouth to keep her quiet.

"Be quiet." Harry hissed. "If Malfoy finds out we're here, he'll think we were spying on him, and I don't want to think about what else he'll do."

Will nodded, unable to say anything as Harry still had his hand over her mouth.

"Well? What do you have to tell me?" Malfoy said, sounding rather annoyed, which was confusing as Will had never heard him use that tone of voice when talking with Elyon.

"I… well, this isn't really easy to say, but I already called you here so…" Elyon started quietly, but trailed off.

'Oh no!' Will thought suddenly, panic filling her. 'What if she's going to tell him about the guardians, and Metamoor! But she wouldn't, she knows better doesn't she?'

"I'm leaving, I've got other things to do." Malfoy snapped.

"No wait Draco!" Elyon said. "I wanted to tell you that I like you. I like you a lot."

Will would've sighed in relief if she'd dared to do so. 'She didn't tell him, thank goodness. Wait a minute, did she just say that she likes him!'

Harry gave Will a look that said, 'Is she crazy?' which caused Will to let out a giggle, causing Harry to clap his hand over her mouth again.

There was silence for what seemed a long time, before Malfoy said, "You do, do you?"

"Yes…" Elyon's voice replied, shaking.

"Well, I'm flattered, but I'm sorry. I don't think that I… that is I don't think I can give you what you want from me…"

"What do you mean?" Elyon asked.

"I can't right now… I'm not ready…"

"Oh, I see."

There was silence again.

"Well, I'm sorry I troubled you. I'll just be on my way." Elyon said finally.

"Elyon, wait, I still-" Malfoy started, but was cut of by what sounded like Elyon running away. "Elyon!"

There was no response and the sound of a door slamming echoed across the floor.

There was a long pause before Will and Harry heard Malfoy walk off.

They peeked around the corner, and found the hall empty.

"What just happened?" Harry asked, obviously confused.

Will sighed, feeling very sorry for her friend, and wishing that she knew where she was so she could try to make her feel better. "Elyon just got her heart broken."

**End Chapter Twenty-One**


	22. Decisions

**Disclaimer:**I do not own W.i.t.c.h. or Harry Potter.

**Chapter Twenty-Two**

**Decisions**

Elyon never came to bed that night.

Cornelia asked Will if she knew anything about why the next morning, and Will explained everything she had over heard in the hall.

"What a jerk." Cornelia spat after Will finished. "Poor Elyon, no wonder she didn't come in last night."

"Honestly, if Malfoy doesn't feel that way about her, I don't know what else he could have said. At least he didn't say something really horrible to her." Will replied. "I mean, he could've said much worse."

Cornelia thought about it for a moment, before she said, "You're probably right, but I was sure he liked her."

"I know. That puzzles me too, and what did he mean when he said he 'could give Elyon what she wants'?" Will said, putting a hand on her chin and narrowing her eyes in thought.

Cornelia shrugged. "Who knows? Hagrid said that Mr. Malfoy hates anyone who's not pure blood or rich."

"Yeah, but Elyon is technically pure blood, rich, and that didn't stop Malfoy from hanging out with her." Will replied. "I just don't think Draco Malfoy is like his father at all, even if he acts like it."

"Why do you think that?" Cornelia asked, her blue eyes widening in surprise. "We all know he's a real moron."

"I don't know, it's just this feeling I have." Will answered quietly.

"…Our stupid guardian intuition again." Cornelia muttered, folding her arms.

"Anyway, it probably would not be a good idea to tell the others about this." Will said. "They might get into the prank pulling mood against Malfoy, especially Irma."

"Yeah, I guess so." Cornelia agreed with a nod. "I just hope Elyon's okay. Good thing there aren't any classes today, I don't think I could come up with an excuses."

"Do you think we should go look for her?" Will asked.

Cornelia sighed, and ran a hand through her long hair. "We probably should."

The two girls left the Gryffindor dorms, and went over to the Astronomy tower first, as Will said she thought it most likely Elyon would be in there.

When Cornelia pressed her ear to the door, however, she couldn't hear anything at all.

"We should go in anyway." Cornelia said. "Just in case."

"Okay, but we should act like we weren't really looking for her." Will replied, and started to open the door, but stopped when it was only open a crack.

"What's wrong?" Cornelia asked.

"Its just… maybe we should just leave her alone for now. I remember when Matt broke up with me, it wasn't anything like what Malfoy said to Elyon, but it hurt and I wanted to be alone." Will replied, starting to close the door.

Cornelia swiftly slid her foot into the opening so that Will couldn't close it. "And did you get left alone?"

"Well, no. You guys and my mom wouldn't leave me alone. The more I protested, the more you visited and called, while my mom took the lock off my door so I couldn't keep her out." Will grumbled, remembering her lack of privacy in her own house.

"Exactly." Cornelia said firmly. "Now open the door."

Will sighed, opened the door, and peered inside.

The hall leading to the tower was so dark; Will could see anything at all.

Cornelia put her head next to Will's so she could look inside. "Damn, it's dark in there." She whispered.

Will rolled her eyes.

"Hey, give us some light with the Heart." Cornelia whispered.

"No! Absolutely not!" Will hissed. "We'll use our wands like everyone else."

"Fine. The Heart gives more light though." Cornelia sighed, taking her wand out of her robe. "Lumos."

Will pulled her own wand our from her robe sleeve. "Lumos."

The two friends stepped into the darkness, and carefully closed the door behind them.

"It's so dark and creepy in here." Cornelia muttered with a shiver. "I wonder why Elyon came in here."

"Maybe because it might remind her of back on Meridian." Will replied. "You know, the dark corridors and everything."

"I spent enough time crawling, flying, and sneaking around in those corridors when we were fighting Phobos to remember that." Cornelia whispered dully. "It might also be because she always loved the stars and-" Cornelia went silent when Will made a signal for her to be quiet.

"There's a light up ahead." Will breathed. "It's probably Elyon."

They crept up to the light and they found Elyon sitting on the floor, with her knees drawn up to her chest, watching a little white ball (which was giving off the light) float in front of her.

"Elyon?" Cornelia said.

Elyon jumped and turned to look at them. "Will? Cornelia? What are you doing here?"

"I left one of my books on the roof, and Will offered to come with me to get it." Cornelia answered, sounding completely honest.

'Nice one Cornelia.' Will thought.

"What about you? What are you doing here?" Cornelia asked, kneeling beside Elyon.

Elyon went back to staring at the ball of light. "I'd rather not talk about it."

"Are you sure?" Cornelia asked gently.

Elyon sighed. "I don't know, I've been stupid."

Will was finding it hard not to blurt out that she knew everything, but she had so say something. "Does it have anything to do with Malfoy?"

Elyon nodded solemnly. "I, for some dumb reason, thought her felt the same way about me."

"Elyon-" Cornelia started, moving to put a hand on her friends shoulder.

Elyon, however, stood up suddenly, looking determined. "I need to go to Meridian."

"What? Why?" Cornelia asked, standing up.

"I need to think about things, and home seems like the nest place to do it." Elyon replied.

"I'll come with you." Will offered. "I promised Sirius I'd visit him."

"Okay, what about you Cornelia?" Elyon said.

Cornelia shook her head. "No, I'd better not. I have to finish Snape's essay on sleeping potions."

"All right, I guess it's just you and me then Will." Elyon said.

'Elyon sure isn't acting like she's just had her heart broken. Maybe she's just trying to be brave.' Will thought.

"Shall we go? I want to leave as soon as possible, if that all right." Elyon said, a little hint of an urgent tone creeping into her voice.

Will let the Heart rise out of her palm, then turned to Cornelia. "Let the others know where we've gone, okay?"

"Sure thing." Cornelia replied.

Will closed her eyes, and felt the Heart start to give off heat as it began to carry out her wish. "Take us to Candracar."

There was a bright flash of light, Cornelia threw up her arms to shield her eyes, and Will and Elyon disappeared.

Cornelia lowered her arms once the light was gone, stilling holding her lit wand, smiling to herself. "I've never seen that from the outside of the flash."

* * *

Will walked toward the house Sirius lived in, ignoring the stares she got from guards who had never seen a guardian out of guardian form, and certainly never wearing a Hogwarts school uniform.

When Will and Elyon had arrived in Candracar, they were briefly greeted by the Oracle, who shortly sent them on their way with out asking any questions, and smiling that pleasant smile Will had come to trust so much.

Will was positive he knew why Elyon wanted to visit Meridian so suddenly, and why Will wanted to come with her, but was very glad he hadn't said anything about it.

Elyon had rushed off into the palace without a word as soon as they had made it to Meridian, leaving Will to find the way to Sirius's house by herself.

Will was now standing in front of the door to his small, cozy looking house. She raised a fist, knocked, and then stepped back to wait, but she didn't even have to wait a minute before the door opened.

"Will! What a surprise, I was expecting to be that captain of the guard again." Sirius said in his gruff voice, beaming at Will. "Please come in."

"Hello Sirius, how have you been?" Will replied, stepping into the house, and returning the smile.

"Well enough, I suppose." Sirius did look well, much better than he had the first time they had met. His once long and matted hair was now only shoulder length (although it was a little messy), he was clean-shaven, and his kind dark eyes could be seen properly now that his hair wasn't in his face. "How have you been?"

"I'm okay, thanks." Will said.

"Come in and sit down." Sirius said, walking into what must've been the sitting room.

Will followed, and sat herself in a purple armchair.

Sirius sat in an identical chair, only after Will had been seated, still beaming (Will guessed he must not get many visitors, let alone human visitors). "How are things at Hogwarts?"

"All right, I guess. Snape's even nastier than ever, if that's possible, dumping boat loads of homework on us Gryffindors when we're trying to get ready for the Quidditch final." Will answered, smoothing out her black skirt. 'God, I hate skirts.' She thought.

"The Quidditch final! Gryffindor's playing? Who else is?" Sirius replied anxiously.

"Ravenclaw."

"Ravenclaw? They had the worst team in the whole school when I was there." Sirius said.

Will shook her head. "Not anymore, they might just be the best team in the whole school."

"Better than Gryffindor?"

"Maybe. We haven't played them yet." Will responded. "I saw them play Hufflepuff though, and they have one hell of a team. My friend, Hay Lin, the seeker, could prove to be quite a rival for Harry."

"Really? She's that good?" Sirius asked.

Will nodded. "The whole team is. We've got a really challenging match ahead of us."

"So you play too then?"

Will nodded again. "Yeah, I'm a chaser."

"I was a beater myself. James and I joined the team at the same time." Sirius said.

"Do you mean James Potter?" Will asked, straightening up.

"Harry's father, yeah." Sirius replied, a tone of sadness in his voice. "Best seeker the team ever had, before Harry of course."

"…Did his mother play?" Will asked quietly.

"Lily? No, she hated the game, thought anyone who played was crazy." Sirius answered. "I hate to think of what she'd do if she knew her son is playing the same position as his father."

'Lily and James, what nice names. I sure wish I could meet them.' Will thought. 'I wonder what they would think of me, and what they would think about me and Harry.'

"Have you told him yet?"

Will snapped out of her thoughts. "What, sorry?"

"Have you told Harry your secret yet?" Sirius repeated.

"Well… not exactly." Will had given a lot of thought to the matter. She spent a few sleepless nights thinking the whole thing through, over and over, again and again, and yet, she found she just couldn't bring herself do tell Harry, no matter how much courage she rounded up.

"Not exactly?" Sirius questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"No, I haven't." Will sighed, lowering her head in shame. "I have thought a lot about it. I want to tell him, I really do, and I know I should."

"Why don't you then?" Sirius asked.

"Because I'm afraid." Will answered meekly. "I'm afraid Harry will reject me."

"Well, I like to think I know Harry better than anybody, though that's probably not true, and I personally think he'd be smarter than to just reject you." Sirius assured her. "He'd be a complete idiot if he did, and I happen to know that his father certainly wouldn't have just flat out reject Lily if she told him a secret like this."

Will looked up at Sirius. 'Everyone's always saying that Harry's so much like his father, maybe I should try it again, prove to him that I trust him, and that want him to trust me.' Will stood up finally, and swallowed the lump in her throat. "I'm going to go back to school now, sorry for not staying longer."

"Why the sudden decision to leave?" Sirius asked, looking mildly surprised.

"I'm going to tell him, and get it out the way. If he does reject me, then at least I'll know I trusted someone enough to tell my secret." Will said, walking to the door and opening it, but turned before walking out. "Thank you Sirius. Thank you very much." And with that, Will turned, and marched out the door, closing it behind her.

Sirius sat back in his chair, and smiled. "You're very welcome." He looked over at a picture on a table next to his chair, which had a picture of himself, James, Lupin, and Lily in their seventh year of school (Peter had been in the picture, but Sirius had seen fit to cut him out and burn that part of the picture). "I think you'd both like Will very much, Lily, James."

**End Chapter Twenty-Two**


	23. It Ends Tonight

**Disclaimer:**I do not own W.i.t.c.h. or Harry Potter.

**Chapter Twenty-Three**

**It Ends Tonight**

Will raced across the courtyard to the palace. 'I have to tell Elyon I'm leaving, then I'll go back and find Harry.'

"What's the hurry Will?"

Will yelped and skidded to a halt when Elyon suddenly appeared out of thin air in front of her. "Don't do that! You scared the crap outta me!"

"Sorry." Elyon said. "So what's the rush?"

"I was coming to tell you I'm going back to school." Will replied, trying to calm herself down.

"I was just coming to tell you the same thing." Elyon said. "I've got to catch up on my homework."

"…So you're okay now?" Will asked.

Elyon nodded. "I think so."

"Well, if you're sure you've taken care of everything…"

"I have. You?"

"Yeah, I have. I guess we'll go then." Will opened her right hand and the Heart rose out for the second time that day. "Take us to Candracar."

For the second time in merely a few hours, Will and Elyon felt the heat of magic engulf them, and they once again disappeared in a flash of light.

* * *

After spending a short time in Candracar, during which Will found out where the best deserted place in the school was to reappear, then Will and Elyon bid goodbye to the Oracle, and used the Heart to transport to the location Will had chosen.

"Moaning Myrtle's bathroom?" Elyon said, after they arrived. "Why here?"

"Because this was the only deserted place in the school." Will answered. "Well, actually, we could have arrived in Snape's office, but I didn't really like the idea of seeing what his office looks like."

"…Moaning Myrtle's bathroom is fine." Elyon replied.

"I thought you'd agree." Will said. "Now, excuse me, but I must find Harry." Will quickly left the room before Elyon could question her, and started running up to the Gryffindor common room. 'Please be there Harry, please, and please understand.'

Will had just made it to the forth floor, when she heard a voice call out, "Will! Hold on!" and Will turned and saw Hay Lin hurrying toward her.

"What is it Hay Lin, I'm in a bit of a hurry." Will panted, stopping.

"Sorry, but it'll have to wait, Cedric is making trouble in the forest." Hay Lin replied urgently.

"What! What kind of trouble!" Will exclaimed.

"We think he's captured a student." Hay Lin answered.

Will looked around to make sure they were alone, before she responded, "A student? What student?"

Hay Lin shrugged. "I don't know."

"How did you find out about this?" Will asked.

"Hagrid found a Hogwarts robe n the forest, and tracks that looked like someone had been dragged along, and there were some other tracks beside the drag marks. Cornelia went to have a look, and she said that the other tracks belong to Cedric." Hay Lin explained. "We have to find him before he does something to that student."

Will was silent. 'Damn, what horrible timing.'

"We have to go now! The others are waiting for us in my grandma's office!" Hay Lin urged.

"All right, let's go." Will sighed.

"Don't worry, I'm sure it won't take long. Last time we fought Cedric, we kissed his scaly ass, and we're even more powerful now." Hay Lin said.

Will nodded and followed Hay Lin down a floor to Yan Lin's office. 'Sorry Harry, I'll get to you as soon as I can.'

* * *

"Has anyone told Elyon about this?" Cornelia asked.

"No, I think she has enough on her mind right now." Will replied.

The girls were standing on the roof of the school in their guardian uniforms, looking out over the ground, waiting for Caleb's signal that everything was clear for them to go into the forest.

"By the way, how did your talk with Sirius go?" Cornelia asked, pulling a lock of her golden hair out of her face and placing it over her should, where the wind picked it up and blew it gently behind her with the rest of her hair.

"Oh… it went okay." Will said, looking away from her friends.

Cornelia frowned. 'Will, you are a really bad liar.'

"Hey, there's the signal!" Irma cried, pointing toward the forest where there was a light flashing in the trees.

"'Kay, let's fly!" Hay Lin said, leaping into the sir and hovering about three feet off the roof, waiting for the other to follow suite.

Irma, Cornelia, and Taranee rose into the sir, and were about to fly off, when they noticed Will hadn't taken to the air and was staring at her shoes.

"Will? We have to get going, someone could come out of the castle any minute." Cornelia said.

Will blinked, looked up at her friends, and slowly flew up to join then. "Sorry, I have some things on my mind."

Irma, Cornelia, Hay Lin, and Taranee all wanted to question Will, but didn't, as there were more important thing matter to attend to.

The five guardians took off, flying quickly towards the forest, high up in the sky, where they thought they couldn't be seen.

* * *

'Will's disappeared yet again.' Harry thought, throwing a stone into the lake and watching the ripples spread out over the dark water. "I wonder where she goes, she didn't even show up on the map.'

There was a silence after Harry tossed another pebble; a tentacle reached lazily up from the lake and a breeze ruffled Harry's hair.

Suddenly, Harry saw a shadow out of the corner of his eye, and he snapped his head to the left to look at it, but when it passed onto him, he looked up.

He saw what he at first thought were five large birds, but it quickly registered that the five things were much too big to be birds and that they weren't flying like birds at all.

In a moment, they were gone, and Harry ran off in the direction they'd gone in, compelled by curiosity.

'Those thing… they looked like they might've been girls!' He thought.

* * *

"Something big was defiantly here." Cornelia said, examining the ground.

"Apparently." Irma replied, pointing to a fallen tree.

"What I don't get is why the tracks suddenly end here." Taranee said, kneeling only a few feet from where the tracks began.

Cornelia frowned, knelt on the ground, placed a hand on the soft soil, and closed her eyes.

"What're you-" Irma started.

"Be quiet." Cornelia commanded.

What Cornelia was doing was connecting with the earth, asking what had happened, and then trying to locate Cedric by using the ground as her eyes.

However, a small movement caught her attention, and she focused on it, wanting to know what it was.

After a minute and nothing more moved, she was starting to move on, when that small movement charged forward.

Cornelia barely got a glimpse of it, but she knew what it was.

Her eyes flew open, and she took quickly to the air. "Guys! Move!"

Instantly, without question, Will, Irma, Taranee, and Hay Lin leapt into the air, just as a tree fell right where they had been standing.

"Come on out Cedric, you slimy bastard!" Irma roared. "We know you're there!"

At that moment, Cedric emerged from the trees, in his snake form, looking ready to kill.

"I was hoping you'd come guardians!" Cedric shouted. "You just love playing the heroes! But where is the lovely Queen Elyon! Is she afraid to face me!"

"No, she just didn't think it was worth her time to fight a worm like you!" Irma yelled back.

Will signaled to Irma to be quiet, then addressed Cedric herself. "Where is the student you took Cedric!"

"That little weirdo? Oh, she's fine, guardians. She's taking a little nap by my liar." Cedric hissed. "No harm has come to Luna Lovegood."

"Luna!" Hay Lin cried in surprise. "You took Luna!"

Cedric just laughed coldly.

"Okay, you're really gonna get it now." Irma snapped, narrowing her eyes like a cat on the hunt. "Ready Hay Lin?"

"You know it!" Hay Lin snarled.

Irma and Hay Lin dove towards Cedric, Cornelia following closely behind, yelling at them to stop.

"Would you two think for once! This is what he wants you to do!" Cornelia yelled, but when this failed to make them stop, she dropped to the ground, landing as hard as she could, casing a rumble to ripple across the ground and making a small crater around her.

This made Cedric lose his balance for a moment, but it was enough time for Cornelia to wrap Cedric in thorny vines.

"Thanks for the opening Cornelia!" Hay Lin called down.

"Just get him!" Cornelia shouted. "I don't know how long I can hold him!"

"Gladly! Irma snarled as she and Hay Lin delivered a powerful combined kick to Cedric's face.

Cedric merely smirked after he straightened up from the blow, looking unharmed, broke one of his arms free of Cornelia's vines and swatted at the two as if they were flies.

Irma hastily dodged, lost her balance in mid air, and flew into a tree, but because she was used to this kind of combat, it didn't hurt her, as much it would have a normal person.

However, Hay Lin being thrown into her by Cedric hurt a little more.

"OOMPH!" Irma gasped, as the wind was knocked out of her.

Hay Lin got off her friend and smiled apologetically. "Sorry Irma."

"…No, it's all right. I'm used to this kinda thing." Irma replied hoarsely, starting to stand up, but winced, and slid back to the ground, holding her ankle.

"What's wrong?" Hay Lin asked.

"I think I twisted my ankle, that's all." Irma answered. "This day just keeps getting better and better."

"All right then, my turn!" Taranee cried, forming a fistful of fire.

No, wait a minute Taranee!" Will said, throwing an arm out in front of Taranee.

"Wait for what?" Taranee asked, blinking in surprise. "Lizard face down there is just asking for it."

"I know, but if you send fire down there, and something bound to catch fire. I want as few signs of a battle and the least amount of damage possible." Will replied.

Taranee looked around at the fallen tree, the small crater where Cornelia had landed, the snapped thorny vines that lay on the ground, spotted with Cedric's blood, and the tree that Irma had flown into, which had a gaping hole from the force of the impact.

"Bit late for that." Taranee said.

"I could use some help here!" Cornelia, who was fighting Cedric on her own, yelled.

Cedric formed a fist, and attempted to squash Cornelia by pounding his fist into the ground where she was standing, and she just barely managed to tumble out of the way in time.

"Will!" Cornelia shouted, hurling a large chunk of earth at Cedric, followed by a fair size tree branch. "Will, do something!"

Will dove for Cedric, her right fist pulled back, magenta light swirling around her fist and arm. "Hey Cedric!" She shouted. "Come and get me why don't you! I'm who you really want! The keep of the Heart right!"

Cedric turned away from Cornelia to face Will, and grinned. "That's more like it Will!"

Will decided she'd let the impact that she knew was coming speak for her.

Now that she was closing in on Cedric, she threw her fist forward, and the light swirling around her arm became brighter, and moved down to swirl around her torso and legs.

Cedric threw his own fist forward, which was swirling with blood red energy, and he and Will's fists met and the two lights mixed.

Cedric and Will seemed frozen in the moment their energies collided, and quite suddenly a bright white light had erupted from the contact.

Cornelia quickly pushed a wall of earth up in front of Irma and Hay Lin to protect them, before running behind a tree, and crouching down with her eyes shut and her hands over her head. 'Will, isn't this a little overkill?' She thought.

Taranee flew off to take cover in the treetops, where she knelt with her hands over her ears, and her eyes closed tight.

Hay Lin and Irma scooted close to the base of Cornelia's wall, and huddled with their eyes shut.

Then, almost as soon as it had started, the light stopped, and the four hiding guardians dared to peek out from their hiding places.

Where the fight had taken place was now a clearing, all the trees had fallen over or were simply gone, the ground was tinted black, like it had been brunt, and there was a crater in the center of the clearing.

Cedric was gone, and Will stood alone in the middle of the crater, panting heavily, but seeming to be all right.

"Will!" Taranee jumped from the trees, and tan to her friend, who fell to her knees, but was smiling.

After Hay Lin was sure Irma was comfortable, she too ran out and knelt next to Will.

"Will? Are you okay?" Taranee and Hay Lin asked in unison.

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine." Will said. "I didn't know I could do that."

Cornelia had been busy leaning against the tree she had run behind, catching her breath. She laughed and then sighed in relief. "Now that was a scare." She said to herself, standing up. "Better make sure everyone's okay." Cornelia was about to take a step into the clearing, when someone spoke to her.

"Cornelia?"

Cornelia froze. 'Oh god, I know that voice.' She turned around slowly, and stared and the person with wide blue eyes. "Harry."

They just stared at each other for a long while, both silent, both not knowing what to say.

"How long have you been here?" Cornelia finally asked. "How much did you see?"

"I- I don't know. But- but how..." Harry stammered, then trailed off.

"Maybe you should come with me. We'll try and explain, okay?" Cornelia said, stepping forward, and offering Harry her hand.

Harry, however, walked around her and into the clearing.

Cornelia looked after him and lowered her outstretched hand. 'I've got a bad feeling about this…'

Back in the clearing, Will was on her feet, giving Taranee and Hay Lin instructions to go find Luna.

"But shouldn't we change back fist?" Hay Lin asked.

Will smiled and shook her head. "Chances are she already knows about Cedric, so we may as well explain things to her. I think we can trust her with out secret."

"You're probably right." Taranee agreed.

"What about Irma?" Hay Lin asked, glancing over at Irma.

"I'll have Cornelia take her back up to school." Will answered. "Hay Corne-" Will had turned to look over where Cornelia had hidden, and froze with shock at who she saw. "Ha- Harry?"

Taranee and Hay Lin exchanged nervous and worried glances.

"Umm, we'll just get going." Taranee said.

She and Hay Lin hurriedly shot into the air and flew away.

Cornelia darted into the clearing and over to Irma, who she helped up and slung one of Irma's arms around her neck.

"Hey, what's going on?" Irma asked.

"Nothing we want to or should be around for." Cornelia replied, walking slowly and trying to help Irma keep her twisted ankle off the ground. "We'll have to change back before we leave the forest, can you do that?"

"Yeah, I think so." Irma replied with a nod.

'Will… you'll be okay. Just remember that we're all here for you, okay?' Cornelia thought, wishing for once that she were telepathic like Taranee.

Will didn't know how long Harry just stared at her, his gaze making her more and more uncomfortable.

"What are you?" Harry asked finally. "What are all of you?"

"We're the guardians." Will answered slowly. "We are the guardians of the veil."

"Guardians? The veil?"

"The veil is what separates Earth and Metamoor, which is kind of like another Earth. It's the guardians job to protect both worlds and the balance between them." Will explained. "I was going to tell you, but this came up and-"

"How did you do all that?" Harry interrupted.

"Our powers come from this." Will held out her right hand and let the Heart hover above her palm. "The Heart of Candracar, and I am its keeper."

Harry was silent, his expression as hard as stone, but unreadable.

"I'm going to have to ask you not to tell anyone." Will said. "Not even Ron or Hermione."

Harry just looked at the ground.

"Harry, please understand, I wanted to tell you, but I couldn't. I just couldn't."

"Why?" Harry asked, not looking at Will.

"We're not supposed to tell anyone. Out parents didn't even know until last year." Will answered. "Harry-"

"I- I don't know."

"Know what?"

"What to think. I mean, being a protector of Earth is a big job. You must've been doing it a long time."

"Almost four years now." Will said, smiling a tiny smile. "It's been hard, but it's not so bad."

"…I won't tell, but I don't… I don't think we should…" Harry trailed off.

"You don't want to see me anymore, do you?"

"…I just need to sort all this out… It is a lot to take in…"

"Right, I understand."

"…I'm sorry Will…"

"I know, me too." Will said, not letting her voice so much as quiver.

"Will?"

"Yes?" Will asked, wishing Harry would just look at her.

"…Maybe when I've sorted this all out… Maybe we can-"

"I'd like that." Will interrupted, a single tear slipping down her cheek.

And with that, Harry slowly turned and walked away slowly, seeming to be in a daze.

Will crumpled to her knees; tears sliding silently down her face, everything seeming to be in a fog.

Then the realization of what just happened hit her, and she began to sob, a fresh wave of hot tears pouring down her face and onto the ground.

'It hurts so much, which can only mean one thing.' Will thought, squeezing her eyes shut to try and stop the flow of tears, but to no avail. 'I fell in love with Harry Potter and didn't even know it. And now it's too late.'

**End Chapter Twenty-Three**


	24. Traps of the Heart

**Disclaimer:**I do not own Harry Potter or W.i.t.c.h.

**Chapter Twenty-Four**

**Traps of the Heart**

"Elyon."

Elyon didn't, wouldn't, look over. She didn't want to talk to the speaker at the moment, or any other time for that matter.

"Elyon, I need to talk to you."

Elyon frowned, and stubbornly walked quickly down the aisle books in the library.

But Draco Malfoy wouldn't give up that easily.

"Elyon, wait." He said as he reached out and grabbed her hand.

Elyon whirled around, blue eyes blazing. "No one touches me unless I say they can."

"Just listen to me, please."

Elyon pulled her hand away. "I don't see what we have to talk about."

"There's… something I want… would you-"

"Oh, for goodness sake Draco, just spit it out!" Elyon snapped. "I don't have all day!"

"Fine! Would you meet me by the forest this evening!" Draco suddenly blurted, his own eyes blazing with an emotion Elyon couldn't identify.

Elyon blushed bright red and blinked. "C-come again?"

"You heard me." Draco snapped, turning away so Elyon couldn't see his face. "Well, will you or not?"

"B-but I th-thought that you-" Elyon stammered, feeling her face grow warmer by the second.

"Things changed." Draco said, not turning around. "So… what do you say?"

Elyon swallowed. "Draco, why do you want to see my by the forest?"

"…A date, I guess you could call it. Away from the rest of the students." Draco muttered.

"I will, I suppose." Elyon replied, still blushing. "What time?"

"Sunset."

"All right then… I'll see you later. Oh, and Draco, I didn't blame you or anything…" Elyon set off back down the aisle, and her expression changed to determination, but the blush was still there.

'I may like you Draco, but I'm not an idiot. I'll ask Cornelia to come and stay hidden, just in case.' She thought, her eyes narrowing in suspicion.

Draco stood still, his expression hidden by the shadows in the library, but he whispered a single word to the silence around him. "Elyon…"

* * *

Elyon found Cornelia in the Great Hall with Caleb, apparently trying to talk him into something.

Elyon wasted no time in striding over to her friend, and sitting down across from her. "Cornelia, I need to talk to you."

Cornelia turned to face Elyon, and instantly knew something was bothering Elyon. "Is it Malfoy?"

Elyon nodded. "He just asked me on a date."

Cornelia glanced around before answering. "But I thought he turned you down."

"He did, that's what I don't like about this." Elyon replied.

"And how come no one told me about this?" Caleb asked, obviously annoyed.

"Because Elyon's personal life is her own business." Cornelia said with a sigh.

"I'm her captain of the guard, it's my business to keep her safe." Caleb replied, folding his arms.

"As well as the guardians duty." Cornelia snapped.

"Would you two not fight? I came to ask both for your help." Elyon interjected sharply.

This was half a lie.

She had originally been going to ask only Cornelia a favor, but now that she thought about it, having Caleb along probably wasn't a bad idea.

"Help?" Cornelia asked, blinking.

"Draco wants me to meet him near the forest, so I was thinking that if you could hide in the forest, and if anything happens, you could help." Elyon explained.

"Why two of us though?" Cornelia asked. "It could just be a date."

"I know that. I just have this weird feeling…" Elyon answered.

"Then why go at all?" Caleb asked, still clearly annoyed.

"Because I also have a feeling that I have to go." Elyon replied, nervously playing with one of her long braids. "I don't know how to describe it, but I get the feeling that something about this whole thing is connected to all the weird stuff that's been going on."

"You think Malfoy's involved?" Cornelia asked, her eyes widening.

"I'm not sure." Elyon said. "But I'm not about to jump to conclusions."

"All right, we'll do it." Cornelia said, with a nod. "You'll have to let us know where to be though."

Elyon smirked. "I think I can take care of that. Just be by the forest at sunset."

And with that, Elyon got up and walked away without another word.

"I wonder if Malfoy really is part of all this." Cornelia wondered out loud, resting her chin in her hands.

"I don't get why we don't just question the guy." Caleb muttered.

"We can't do that. How would we keep whoever he might be working for from finding out?"

"The Oracle could erase his memory."

"And you don't think a powerful wizard couldn't get around that? Spells can be broken."

"The Oracle doesn't use spells."

"No, but it is magic. Ever heard of Bertha Jorkins?"

"No, should I have?" Caleb asked.

"You're supposed to be the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher." Cornelia teased.

"Just explain please." Caleb said.

"A couple of years ago she was captured by Lord Voldemort, and he broke a memory charm on her for information, but to get the information, he tortured her so badly that-" Cornelia paused and shivered. "That she was so… so damaged that the merciful thing to do was to kill her, so that's what happened."

"Why is it that you five always seem to know more than me?"

"If you paid attention to gossip once in a while, you might learn something." Cornelia teased, ruffling Caleb's hair.

"Not here Cornelia." Caleb warned, pushing her hand away gently. "Remember what Professor Dumbledore told us."

Cornelia sighed. "Yeah, it's a down side, isn't it?"

"If that's what it takes to do our jobs right." Caleb asked.

Cornelia frowned. "A job's always been more important, hasn't it?"

"Now, wait a minute, that's not what I-" Caleb started.

"I'm going to see Professor Sprout about something." Cornelia interrupted, standing up. "I'll see you later."

Cornelia walked off before Caleb could say or do anything.

Caleb groaned and ran a hand through his hair. "Sometimes I wonder why I love her so much when she's so much trouble."

* * *

Will could hardly bear the whole thing.

Harry wouldn't even look at her, let alone speak to her.

Why hadn't things worked out?

Maybe if she had been quicker getting back, maybe if she had told him everything earlier, maybe it would've work out.

But things hadn't worked out, she had been as quick as she could, and she hadn't told him, and she knew there was nothing she could do to change that.

Every time Will thought about the way things could have gone, her heart ached even more.

Luna had taken the whole thing well, she had happily accepted the guardians, was now an even closer friend to them all, and was now almost always in the company of Irma and Hay Lin.

So why hadn't Harry accepted them, accepted her?

The question haunted her constantly, even now as she sat alone at the same table where she and Harry had really talked together for the first time, staring out of window with sad brown eyes.

She heard footsteps, and looked toward the sound.

The person stopped when he saw Will, and their eyes met.

'Harry.' Will thought. 'How do you see me when you look at me now?'

Harry stood in silence, staring at Will. He opened his mouth to say something, thought better of it, closed his mouth, looked away, and walked on.

Will watched him go, feeling her heart break a little more.

"Harry…" She whispered.

* * *

Caleb stood at the edge of the forest with his arm folded, waiting for Elyon's signal, whatever it was. He heard soft footsteps behind him, and turned.

Cornelia was walking toward him, looking very sorry about something.

Caleb sighed. "I thought you wouldn't come."

"My friend asked me a favor, and I never disappoint a friend." Cornelia said, stopping next to Caleb.

"Well, that's good to know."

"Caleb, about earlier, I didn't mean what I said, it's just I-" Cornelia started.

"Forget about it." Caleb interrupted.

"No, let me finish." Cornelia insisted. "The reason I said that is because I miss you. I miss having it just be you and me sometimes. I haven't been alone with you since I started school here, and since you started teaching. All it's been is duty this, duty that. I'm the student, and you're the teacher. I'm sick of it."

Caleb looked surprised. "That's what it is?"

Cornelia nodded, and looked away. "It's stupid, I know."

Caleb, not being the most romantic guy in the universe, was unsure of what to do, and scratched his head.

Cornelia was used to this, but found it made her uncomfortable.

"How about this?" Caleb said finally. "Next Hogsmede weekend, I'll take you some place where the two of us can spend some time together. Alone."

Cornelia looked up and smiled. "I like the sound of that." She took a step forward, and closed her eyes, expecting a kiss.

Caleb blinked, looked around to make sure no one was watching, and then leaned forward to give Cornelia a kiss.

Unfortunately, their lips had just touched when there was a small pop, and Caleb and Cornelia quickly broke apart and saw Elyon standing to their left, looking very embarrassed.

"Sorry guys." Elyon said, shifting uncomfortably from foot to foot. "Maybe I'll leave for a few minutes…"

"No, no, Elyon, it's okay." Cornelia said quickly.

"That's right, this is more important. We promised we'd help." Caleb added.

Cornelia made annoyed face, which Caleb didn't see since he was facing Elyon (Elyon did notice however), but Cornelia didn't say anything, and shrugged and sighed. 'Just drop it Cornelia. No big deal.' She thought.

"Okay, if you're sure…" Elyon said.

"So, what's the deal? Where is he meeting you?" Cornelia asked, in a bit of a grumble.

"Here."

"Here?" Cornelia repeated. "When?"

"Any moment."

"WHAT!" Cornelia yelped, looking behind her as if afraid Malfoy would be standing right there. "Where do we hide!"

"In the forest, and hurry up." Elyon said, strangely calm.

Cornelia and Caleb rushed into the forest and hid behind a log, where they could peek over the top and see what was going on.

"That was a big help." Cornelia muttered. "She could've gotten to us about that a little earlier."

"At least she told us at all. I was half expecting her to forget all together, the way you girls are around guys." Caleb replied in a whisper.

Cornelia straightened up and frowned. "What was that?"

"Uhhh…" Caleb looked over the log, as if hoping something would give him an excuse not to answer, and was happy when he saw one. "Get down." He hissed, grabbing Cornelia and pulling her the ground.

"What? What is it?" Cornelia asked.

"Malfoy."

Luckily, they found a hole in the log where they could see Elyon and Malfoy without being seen themselves, but unfortunately, they could hear anything they were saying.

"We should be able to hear." Caleb muttered.

"No, we shouldn't. If this really is just a date, then poor Elyon would be embarrassed about it if we heard anything." Cornelia hissed.

Caleb just shook his head. 'What is it with girls? They're so secretive.' He thought.

The two watched and Malfoy and Elyon stood together, talking, Elyon blushing a light pink, while Malfoy looked strangely distracted and nervous.

'Something's not right. Why does he keep looking at the forest?' Cornelia thought, glancing at Caleb, for once wishing she could broadcast her thoughts to other people.

Caleb met her gaze, and she could tell by the look in his eyes that he was thinking the same thing. "This isn't right, you noticed he keeps looking this way too, didn't you?"

Cornelia nodded, and then a thought struck her. "Caleb, Cedric is in the forest. And if he and Malfoy are both working for the same person-"

"Then Malfoy might be expecting Cedric." Caleb finished, his eyes widening. "But why?"

"To kidnap Elyon." Cornelia whispered very quietly, feeling a chill run down her spine as the words passed her lips. "Some how, some way, whoever they're working for probably knows about Elyon, but I don't understand why they would-"

Caleb put a hand over her mouth, silencing her when he saw Malfoy and Elyon both look over towards the forest suddenly, but let go when they looked away. "But who could they be working for?"

"Will said that in one of her visions, she saw a man that looked like a snake. I've only heard of one person who looks like that, but I didn't think of it until just now." Cornelia said. "Do you remember me telling you about Lord Voldemort this morning?"

Caleb nodded.

"According to Harry, Lord Voldemort looks like a snake."

"But why would this Lord Voldemort want-" Caleb was cut off when they heard a loud roar. "What was- Hey, where are you going!"

Cornelia had leapt up, and rushed toward Malfoy and Elyon when the roar had started, and Caleb jumped to his own feet and followed.

Cornelia pushed Malfoy away from Elyon roughly, and stood protectively in front of her friend. "You! Stay away from Elyon! I know what you're planning!"

"Where the hell did you come from?" Malfoy asked, apparently surprised to see Cornelia.

"Cornelia, what in the name of the Oracle are you doing?" Caleb exclaimed, reaching her and Elyon.

"Elyon, Malfoy's working with Cedric! And they're both working for Voldemort!" Cornelia cried.

They heard the roar again, and Cornelia quickly transformed into her guardian form, and face the forest, ready for what she knew was coming.

"Cornelia-" Caleb started.

"Draw your sword Caleb, it's gonna take both of us to keep Cedric away." Cornelia ordered.

Caleb drew his sword, and shook his head again. "Why is it you get so wound up when these things happen?"

Cornelia smirked. "Same reason you do."

"Now wait just a minute, what are you two doing here? Don't you know when two people want to be alone?" Malfoy snapped. "And what the hell is with you two?"

"I also know when to come to a friend's help, and when to do my duty." Cornelia replied, not turning to face Malfoy. "You know all about my powers, and Elyon's, so don't play dumb."

Elyon, who had been silent until now, spoke, her voice clear and unwavering. "Cornelia's right isn't she Malfoy?"

Malfoy paused, at a loss for words.

Elyon smiled sadly. "You knew everything, more or less anyway. You knew about me, and you used me for something. And again I fell for it."

"… What do you mean again?" Malfoy asked, taking a step closer, but backed off quickly when a root sprung up from the ground, and tried to whip him.

"You mean Phobos didn't tell you?" Elyon asked, her smile fading, and her face becoming dead serious. "What does it matter? Leave me alone, my captain of the guard, the earth guardian and I have something else to take care of."

"So, you really are the princess?"

"Queen." Elyon corrected. "Queen Elyon." She stepped away, and transformed into her flowing white dress and crown in a flash of white light.

Suddenly, there was a loud crash from the forest, and Cedric raced toward them, in his snake form, ready to kill.

Elyon's fists clenched when she saw Cedric, and she sent a flashing bolt of white light at him without hesitation.

Cedric was hit and fell to the ground, still sliding forward, leaving a trench in the ground.

Cornelia flew into the air, waved her hands, and roots sprung up from the ground wrapping around Cedric to hold him in place, while she raised a large rock to hurl at him.

Cedric rolled out of the way as the rock came crashing down, breaking the roots, but Cornelia sent the roots crashing after him, growing longer and longer.

Elyon levitated herself next to Cornelia, and said something to her friend.

Cornelia stopped the advancing roots, and put her palm against Elyon's and she sent out a blast of green light from her other hand, and Elyon sent out white light with her other hand.

Cedric managed to dodge, and Cornelia cursed.

"Damn, I'm too slow. Without the other guardians, my powers and weakened too much for me to fight properly." She spat.

Caleb started to rush forward, but Elyon held up her hand, signaling him to stop.

"Keep an eye on Malfoy." She ordered. "We'll need to question him later."

Caleb frowned, but stepped back and grabbed Malfoy roughly by the collar of his shirt, and held him firmly in place. "Try to run, and you'll get more than just a small cut."

Malfoy didn't hear him however; he was staring at Elyon with an expression of shock, regret, and wonder. 'She's… she's beautiful.' He thought.

Cedric rushed forward, and Cornelia attempted to send another bolt of green magic at him, but it merely bounced off Cedric's scales.

"Damn, without the Heart, I'm practically useless." Cornelia snapped, narrowing her eyes in frustration.

"Then leave him to me." Elyon said, diving toward Cedric with blazing blue eyes. "Cedric you traitor!"

A flicker of remorse showed on Cedric's face for a moment, but it passed quickly. "Don't call me a traitor, Queen Elyon!"

'It doesn't sound like he's mocking her when he uses Elyon's title.' Cornelia noted to herself, hovering above the forest. 'Could it be he really did, and maybe still does, love Elyon?'

Elyon charged up large white bolts of magic, giving out an angry cry as the two bolts crackled and sparked like lightning.

Cedric stopped and braced himself for her attack, and Elyon slammed the two bolts to Cedric's arms, the magic crackling louder as it enveloped Cedric's whole body, and Elyon's threatening cry suddenly ceased.

Finally Cedric crumpled to the ground, back in human form, and Elyon stood over him, her face strangely expressionless but tears were on her face.

"Elyon!" Cornelia cried, landing and running over to Elyon. "What happened are you all right?"

Elyon looked at Cornelia, her face still blank. "I saw his thoughts, Cornelia. He… he really did-"

"Love you." Cornelia finished quietly, looking down at Cedric. "Did you find out if he still does?"

Elyon shook her head. "He has those thoughts locked up tight in his mind. He let me see those old ones, but he wouldn't let me see what he thinks now."

"He let you?" Cornelia asked.

Elyon sighed. "I don't think he can bring himself to hate me, just as I can't bring myself to hate him."

Cornelia put a hand on Elyon's shoulder. "I understand."

Meanwhile, Caleb watched and shook his head. "Girls are so weird. Queen Elyon was just furious, and now she crying?"

Malfoy heard this comment. "That's just the way they are. I can't see a girl like Elyon being mad for long."

"Did I say you could talk?" Caleb snapped.

Elyon and Cornelia started to walked toward Malfoy and Caleb, but Cornelia noticed movement behind her, and jumped in front of Elyon just as a bolt of red magic hurled forward and hit Cornelia square in the chest.

Cornelia screamed, and landed on the ground with a dull thud.

"Cornelia!" Elyon cried, dropping to her knees in panic.

"Cornelia!" Caleb yelled, releasing Malfoy and rushing to Cornelia's side.

Suddenly and bolt of red magic hit Caleb, and he cried out, and fell to the ground beside Cornelia.

Elyon screamed as Cedric grabbed her for behind, and pulled her to him, holding her tightly, and clamping a hand over her mouth.

"You shouldn't be so quick to believe you've won a fight, Queen Elyon." Cedric said in her ear, making her try to kick him away. "Be still, no harm will come to you."

Of course Elyon only struggled harder.

"Come here boy!" Cedric spat.

Malfoy came forward and stood by Cedric, biting his lip.

Elyon glared hard at him and yelled words that were muffled by Cedric's hand.

"Let's go." Cedric snapped, and in a flash of red light, they were gone.

Cornelia had been struggling to drag herself forward to stop them, but stopped when they were gone. "Elyon…"

Someone picked her up bridle style, and she was surprised to see Caleb holding her.

"Caleb, you're hurt too." Cornelia said.

"It's nothing, we have to tell Will about what happened." Caleb replied, giving her a lopsided grin.

And they started slowly up to the castle, with only the thought of saving Elyon on their minds, but didn't know how they would pull it off.

**End Chapter Twenty-Four**


	25. Quicksand

**Disclaimer:**I do not own W.i.t.c.h. or Harry Potter. And I'm cool with that.

**Chapter Twenty-Five**

**Quicksand**

"Oh shit, this is not good." Irma swore.

"Irma, you've said that fifteen times, cut it out." Cornelia snapped, giving Irma an annoyed look.

"It's the truth." Irma replied.

"I have to side with Cornelia on this one, it is getting annoying." Hay Lin put in.

Irma sighed. "Fine, you're right. Sorry."

The five guardians, Caleb, and Yan Lin were all crowded into Yan Lin's office, and were supposed to be thinking up ways to save Elyon, but all they'd really done was panic.

"If we don't save Elyon, Phobos could rise to power in Meridian again." Taranee remarked, sitting down in a chair with a sigh.

"Or worse, considering Voldemort's involved." Cornelia added, flattering her black skirt purely out of habit.

"This is horrible, why didn't you tell us about this?" Irma said, pointing accusingly at Cornelia.

"I knew Malfoy was up to something, but it didn't click until I heard Cedric in the forest. I thought I could handle Malfoy." Cornelia replied harshly, standing up to look Irma in the eye.

Irma frowned, and looked over at Will. "Will, you got any ideas?"

Will was silent.

Irma dismissed it as shock, and turned away.

"I remember Seamus telling me about this club they had at school last year, I think it was called the D.A." Hay Lin said.

"Dean told me about that too." Taranee noted.

"Dean? Dean Thomas?" Irma asked, giving Taranee a smirk.

"Yeah, so?"

"I didn't know you were hanging around with him is all." Irma said innocently.

"Can't I hang around with someone?" Taranee replied, giving Irma a warning look.

"Can we please stay on topic?" Caleb cut in, clearly annoyed.

"Did Seamus say anything else about the D.A.?" Cornelia asked.

"He told me it stood for Dumbledore's Army. Last year they had a horrible Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Dolores Umbridge, and never taught them anything because she was told not to by the ministry, no magic, no spells, no nothing. Since Voldemort had returned the previous year, some of the students decided this was a problem, so they put together a club to learn in secret, and elected Harry to teach them because he's so advanced." Hay Lin explained.

Something flickered in Will's eyes at the mention of Harry, but did not look up.

"The club fell apart after a few months because someone told the teachers, but there are still members who are loyal to the cause, including Seamus, Dean, Neville Longbottom, and other students from Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. No Slytherins were ever in the club." Hay Lin continued.

"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Irma muttered.

"We should ask them for help!" Cornelia exclaimed, eye widening with hope. "We should go to Harry, Ron, and Hermione! They'll help us!"

"Cornelia, I'm not sure-" Caleb started.

"I agree with Cornelia." Hay Lin interrupted, giving a slight nod. "Elyon is their friend too."

"I'm not so sure…" Taranee said.

"Look at who the members are, Seamus, Dean, Neville, Harry, Ron Hermione, Ginny, Luna, they're all our friends, and they'll help us." Hay Lin responded. "Seamus told me that their unofficial motto was 'Courage might fail you, but friends won't'. If we can't trust them, who can we trust?"

"We'd have to reveal ourselves." Taranee stated.

"Then we'll reveal ourselves. If it helps Elyon, why should we care?" Cornelia retorted, slamming a fist down on a table.

"I'm with Cornelia!" Irma declared. "If people who call themselves our friends really are our friends, they won't care about us being guardians! They'll just want to help Elyon!"

"I couldn't have said it better myself, Irma." Cornelia said, grinning.

"Well, when you put it that way…" Taranee admitted.

"Come on, let's go find Harry, Ron, and Hermione right now!" Hay Lin said, jumping to her feet.

"Aren't you going to do anything to stop them?" Caleb asked Yan Lin, who had been silently listening this whole time.

"No, this is the guardian's decision. What they decide is their choice." Yan Lin answered calmly, a hint of a smile tugging at her lips. "I have faith that they have made the right one."

"Fine, but I'm going with them though." Caleb said, standing as well.

"Will? Are you coming?" Taranee asked, turning to face Will.

The answer she got was silence.

"Will?" Taranee repeated.

The others turned, and Cornelia instantly recognized something was wrong.

"Wilma Vandom! Do you agree with our plan or not!" Cornelia snapped.

Will blinked and shook her head.

"And why not?" Cornelia demanded "And you better actually say something this time."

"They won't accept us. Why should they? We're different." Will said.

"Are you saying that because you really think that's true, or because of a recent personal experience?" Cornelia replied, folding her arms.

Will looked up at Cornelia, surprised. "How did you know? I even managed to block Taranee out."

"It wasn't hard to figure out from the way you've been acting." Cornelia snapped, staring hard at Will.

"Figure out what?" Hay Lin asked, looking puzzled.

"That Harry Potter broke up with Will after he found out about the guardians." Cornelia answered, her voice forceful.

'So, Cornelia the earth guardian is now showing her real power of strength of will.' Yan Lin thought, observing the scene. 'But Will also has a strong will. I wonder whose is stronger?'

"Why would he do that?" Taranee said.

"Obviously he was shocked, and who can blame him, by the thought of having a girlfriend who is the protector of Earth and an alternate sort of Earth." Cornelia replied. "It happens Will, get over it."

"I know, but-" Will started.

"For god's sake Will! We have an emergency here! Elyon, the Queen of Metamoor and our friend is in danger! " Cornelia yelled, her blue eyes burning with stubbornness. "Are you going to just turn your back on her!"

Will finally stood up and made an attempt to defend herself from Cornelia's accusations. "No, no, of course not."

"Then do something Will! You're the keeper of the Heart, the leader of the guardians! Start acting like it!" Cornelia practically roared.

Will was silent for a long moment, during which time Cornelia looked more than ready to make more arguments if needed, but luckily, she didn't have too.

"Let's just go." Will finally relented.

As much as the guardians would have liked to console Will further, they knew their mission was far more important at this time.

The girls and Caleb left the office to go into the third floor hallway, where Will divided them up.

"Cornelia, Taranee, I need you to go find Hermione, Hay Lin and Irma, you find Ron, Caleb, please go to Professor Dumbledore, tell him the whole story, he'll understand." Will said.

"What about you?" Taranee asked.

"I'm going to find Harry." Will replied, firmly.

The girls exchanged worried glances, before heading off toward where they thought it most likely the people were looking for would be, and Caleb strode off down the hallway.

Will stood for a moment, collecting her thoughts, then shoving them aside, and walking, with her face set, toward the place she knew Harry would be, the lake.

* * *

"Hermione! We need to talk to you!" Cornelia cried, running across the courtyard toward the bench where Hermione was studying.

"Is something wrong?" Hermione asked, setting aside her book, and standing to meet Cornelia and Taranee.

"It's Elyon, she's been kidnapped!" Cornelia exclaimed, glad the courtyard was empty.

"What! By who!" Hermione said.

"We'll explain later, but please, call the D.A. together! We need the D.A.'s help!" Cornelia replied, almost begging. "Call them to the best meeting place!

"The D.A.? How do you know- oh never mind, anyone loyal to the D.A. will be happy to help." Hermione pulled a gold coin out of a pocket in the inside of her robe, and tapped it three times with her wand. "There, now would you mind explaining?"

"On the way to there, but I don't know if you'll believe us." Taranee said.

"Oh, I wouldn't say that." Hermione said.

* * *

"Oi! Ron! You got a moment!" Irma called through the crowd in the Great Hall.

"Yeah, sure!" Ron replied, making his way over the Entrance Hall from the Gryffindor table, happy to get away from Colin Creevey, who had been sitting next to him.

When he reached the Entrance Hall, Irma and Hay Lin grabbed him and pulled him into a broom closet.

"What the bloody-" Ron started to swear after the girls released him.

"Ron, listen, Elyon's been taken!" Hay Lin cut him off.

"What do you mean taken?" Ron asked, staring confused at the girls.

"Malfoy's taken her away! We think he's a death eater! Elyon's a hostage!" Irma answered, making up a lie.

"That bastard, I knew he was a no good son of a-"

"Just come on! We need your help!" Irma interrupted.

"Check whatever the D.A. used to call meetings!" Hay Lin urged.

Ron reached into his pants pocket, and pulled out a gold coin that looked like a normal galleon. "But- but-"

Irma grabbed his arm, while Hay Lin opened the broom cupboard, and lead him out.

"Lead us to where ever is it that you guys meet." Irma said, letting go of Ron.

"All right, this way." Ron said, leading the girls up the marble stairs.

* * *

Will didn't even stop to sum up her courage when she approached Harry, who was sitting by the lake, deep in thought. "Harry."

Harry turned and instantly got to his feet. "Will, we-"

"What ever you're going to say will have to wait. Elyon's been taken by death eaters, Voldemort wants her for something."

Harry's eyes widened. "I'll help, of course, but Will we really need to talk about this."

"We do, but we can't now." Will insisted. "I'm sorry Harry, but duty has always, and will always come before my personal feelings. I am supposed to protect earth, I can't do that without the D.A.'s, without your help."

Harry sighed and nodded. "I'll lead you to where we meet, and you can explain all this."

"Agreed." Will said.

* * *

"Anyone wanna tell us why we are having a D.A. meeting after a year?" Seamus said, among the few students who had turned up to the meeting.

"In a minute, in a minute, we want to make sure everyone's here." Harry called. He turned to Will, who was standing behind him, the other guardians at her side.

"Are you sure you know what you're doing?"

"No, but it's always worked before." Will said.

Harry nodded and walked to stand with Ron and Hermione.

Will stepped forward. "Could I have your attention please?"

The room went quiet, and all eyes were on Will now.

"Some of you might not know us, but we have something we need help with. Before I explain, there's something those of you who have turned up need to see, and I'm Will Vandom, from Gryffindor by the way." Will said. "Guys, if you could step forward and say your names, so everyone will know us."

Irma, being the I in W.i.t.c.h, stepped forward. "Irma Lair, from Ravenclaw."

Taranee was next. "I'm Taranee Cook, from Ravenclaw too."

Then Cornelia. "My name is Cornelia Hale, Gryffindor house."

At last Hay Lin. "Hay Lin, from Ravenclaw."

Will sighed, and opened her right fist, the Heart coming out to float above her palm, glowing faintly.

Gasps echoed around the room, but Will ignored them, as she and the others started their transformation.

Will closed her eyes and let the music surge though her, and she felt her face changing once again, her legs lengthen, her wings sprouting, tasting the warm familiar magic.

Finally the magic stopped, and Will looked around to see her friends standing around her, looking both beautiful and dead serious in their fighting forms.

"So, anyone got any questions?" Cornelia said, folding her arms and smirking in an amused way.

There was silence for a moment, but then a single voice said, "They've been hiding this all year!"

Will was horrified to see that the speaker was none other than Cho Chang, yet it seemed like she had said it out of surprise, not spite.

"We have our reasons of course." Irma said, folding her arms as well. "You really think anyone else would've believed us?"

"Believed what?" Ginny called from near the back row, looking surprisingly calm.

"Okay, story time." Irma sighed. "Long ago the universe was a place of absolute peace, until some people diced to start making trouble, and by trouble, I mean war. To keep some peace, the universe was divided into two halves, one half for those who wanted war, and all that, the other side for those who hated fighting, to do that, the veil was created. One side was earth, the other side was Metamoor, where all the baddies live."

Taranee took over. "And Candracar was created to help keep the balance, keeping the veil up. However, at some times, they can't keep the balance themselves, they need a little help, and that's where we come in, the guardians of the veil, and we help keep humans on our side, people from Metamoor on their side, and the occasional keeping peace on both sides now and then."

Cornelia took her turn. "There have been generations of guardians, we're only the newest ones, and someone we'll have to pass our duty on to another generation. We learned we were the guardians when Will and I were fourteen, and Hay Lin, Irma, and Taranee were thirteen, so we've had the job three years, and we were all given special powers to do our job."

Will told her bit. "I was given the Heart of Candracar, the source of our powers, and appointed leader of the guardians. Irma was given the power over water, among other abilities, Taranee controls fire and can read peoples minds, no don't worry, she won't do it unless she feel she needs to, which isn't often, Cornelia was granted earth with a few other surprises thrown in, and finally Hay Lin was given air, as well as the ability to turn invisible."

Hay Lin took the finish. "Elyon is Queen of Metamoor, was raised on earth, and she became Queen after we helped her overthrow her evil older brother, Phobos, and we didn't see her for a while after that. We met her on the train on the way to Hogwarts, and learned she had arranged to attend school this year. She was recently kidnapped by Cedric, one of Phobos' flunkies, and Draco Malfoy, who I'm sure you all know."

"We believe that they took her to Voldemort, and Phobos. We believe they've teamed up to try to get us, Phobos for revenge, but we don't know Voldemort's motive." Cornelia said. "We need to get her back, but we need help. So please, please help us." She sighed, and sank to her knees. "Please, I'm begging. You're all Elyon's friends, please help save her."

The other guardians also sank to their knees, and were painfully aware of their hearts thudding painfully loud in their chests, while the students mutter and talked among themselves.

Hermione and Ron stepped forward.

"They were willing to reveal their deepest secret to us to try and help their friend, our friend. Can we really say no to them? We've all had loved ones endangered my the death eaters, they're no different from us." Hermione said, trying to help, but nothing in the eyes of most of those in the room changed.

"Why should we trust them if they've been hiding this?" Lavender Brown said, from where she was standing with her arms folded with a group of girls who were all into Divination.

"Put yourselves in their place. Would you have really shown yourself first thing to a bunch of people you didn't even know?" Ginny snapped from across the room, obviously choosing the guardians side. "Here's what I say, those who want to help, come over to this side, if you don't, go over there."

Slowly but surely, a large group of students stood on Ginny's side (including Lavender, who had changed her mind), with only a few, including Cho Chang and her group of friends on the other side.

"You can leave if you don't want to help, but you have to promise not to tell anyone about what you've seen or heard here, understood?" Will said, rising to her feet, and giving the students who wouldn't help a serious look.

"Fine, we won't." Cho Chang agreed stiffly.

"I don't see why anyone would risk their necks for a bunch of people they hardly even know." Cho's friend Marietta said coolly.

"Well, some of us do know them very well." Ginny snapped back.

"And some of us hardly know them, like you said, but we feel if we were in their shoes, we'd want someone to help us get out friend back." Cody Larson, one of the beater's on the Gryffindor team, added.

"Plus, it took a lot of courage to reveal all this to us. Wouldn't you want them to accept you? Besides, if they are the protectors of the whole universe and have been keeping us safe for three years, I think we owe it to them to help." Lisa Jones, one of Irma's fellow chasers, said.

Without another word, Cho and Marietta left the room, the other five people who had been standing with them apparently changing their minds after those little speeches.

"You know, we really can't thank you enough, really." Will said, turning to face the group of people before her.

Harry stepped forward, and surprised Will by smiling at her. "Of course, we all have to look out for each other."

"Harry…" Will whispered.

"I want to talk to you when we get back. There are some things we have to sort out." Harry whispered.

Will nodded. "I know…" Will looked firmly on those who had agreed to help, and took a deep breath. "Let's go save Elyon!"

Her statement was met by cheers, but they died when Luna stated, "Any idea how to get there?"

The room was silent for a moment, while Will thought frantically.

'I could find them with the Heart, but I wouldn't be able to bring this many people there with it." She thought.

Suddenly, the door to the room burst open and Caleb yelled, "Professor Dumbledore has a way for us to get there! Follow me!"

"Caleb, you're a life saver!" Cornelia exclaimed, rushing over to him and throwing her arms around him.

Caleb blushed. "I know."

Will looked back at the small crowd with a determined smile, hope renewed. "You heard the man, let's go!"

**End Chapter Twenty-Five**


	26. Betrayal

Warning: F word usage.

**Disclaimer:**I do not own W.i.t.c.h. or Harry Potter.

**Chapter Twenty-Six  
Betrayal**

Will couldn't believe her ears as she stood in Dumbledore's office with Harry, as she looked at the headmaster, who was sitting behind his desk, with an expression of disbelief.

"Sir, I thought apperating inside the school was impossible." Harry said.

"Yes, it is Mr. Potter, but the headmaster has to have ways around his own rules, hasn't he?" Dumbledore answered, looking at the two teens with that familiar twinkle in his eyes.

Will still couldn't believe it, that Dumbledore had a way to apperate on the school grounds.

The whole idea that headmaster would help them break the rules just seemed too good to be true.

"Well, how do we do it sir?" Will asked anxiously, fully aware of Cornelia using Taranee's telepathy to broadcast her impatience.

"The question is not how, Miss Vandom, but where." Dumbledore replied.

Will and Harry exchanged confused looks.

Dumbledore smiled. "Harry, I'm sure you are familiar with a place called the Chamber of Secrets."

Harry's eyes widened, and Will looked between him and Dumbledore, puzzled.

"But sir, how could the chamber-" Harry started.

"There have been enchantments on the school grounds and the school itself since it was opened. The chamber was built years afterward, and far beneath the school." Dumbledore interrupted.

"So the enchantments don't work in the chamber?"

"Exactly."

"But to get into the chamber, we'll have to… I'll have to…" Harry trailed off, looking unsure of something.

"Yes, I'm afraid you will have to use Parseltongue again, hopefully for the last time." Dumbledore said.

Will felt a cold chill travel down her spine.

Now she remembered why the Chamber of Secrets sounded familiar.

Why not? Professor Bins had assigned them an essay on the Hogwarts founder's months ago, and she had come across the legend in her studying.

But for it to be real, to really but real, and not just a legend…

Will took a moment to remind herself that she currently had wings, and that she held a powerful magical item, which also was supposed to be legend.

But then the rest of what Dumbledore had said sunk in.

She turned and started at Harry. "You're a Praselmouth"

Harry flinched as though Will had slapped him.

"Why? How?" Will questioned, knowing that her gaze was burning into him from how he avoided her eyes.

When she got no answer from him, she turned to Dumbledore, ready to plead for answers.

But Dumbledore sighed and shook his head. "He will have to tell you that himself."

Will nodded, saying nothing.

"I'm sure you have older students who will be able to take the younger ones, and I know apperation will not be necessary for you or the other guardians Will." Dumbledore said.

Will blinked in surprise when Dumbledore used her first name. "Ri- right sir."

"Harry, I would recommend that you and Will go to open the chamber first, then have the other students join you afterwards. Several of your teachers have already gone to look for a way into Voldemort's hide out." Dumbledore said, getting up from his deck to stand where Fawkes would normally be, yet today he was not there.

"You know where it is!" Will exclaimed.

"Yes, in fact. Divination is a useful art."

'Useful, but not easy.' Will thought.

"Oh, sir, there's something you should know, Elyon's older brother, Phobos, is working with Voldemort, at least we think he is, and he's very dangerous. He shouldn't be underestimated. It took everything the guardians and Elyon had combined to defeat him. His had his goon, Lord Cedric, take Elyon, with Draco Malfoy's help." Will explained.

"Did you say Lord Cedric?" Harry asked suddenly, looking toward Will at last.

"Yes, why?" Will replied, once again puzzled.

Harry looked away again. "I- I met him. In the forest, the day Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw played against each other. He set this whole thing up, just to talk to me."

"And what did he say?" Will asked, putting aside her curiosity as to why he didn't say anything to anyone.

"He- he told me- Will, you okay?"

Will had winced and put a hand to her head. "Yeah, its just Cornelia being her usually impatient impatient self."

"Ummm… I'm sorry, what?"

"The guardians have a telepathic link, thanks to Taranee, and she's telling me to stop wasting time." Will explained. "Elyon is her best friend after all."

"And your friend is right, there will be time for questions later, after your current task is done." Dumbledore said.

"Aren't you coming sir?" Harry asked, almost fearfully.

"No, Harry, there's something I must do here first, but I promise I'll be along shortly. Now then, for the location for Voldemort's lair…"

* * *

Harry and Will walked silently along the second floor, almost able to taste the unease in the air.

Will had told Taranee to bring their little army to Myrtle's bathroom when she contacted Taranee and told her to, and not a moment before.

Harry seemed grateful for this, which Will had done because she knew he probably wouldn't want everyone watching him when he opened the chamber, but he hadn't said a word to her since they left Dumbledore's office, but Will did expect him to anyway.

After all, what was there to say?

So they continued down the hall, the only sound being the echo of their own hurried footsteps.

Finally, they reached Myrtle's bathroom, and Will threw the door open.

Both Will and Harry waited a moment before entering, both feeling very cautious because of everything that had happened in the lat few hours.

The first thing Harry did was look around, first looking at the stalls, then glancing at sinks in front of them.

Will remained silent while he did this, but almost screamed when Myrtle popped up from out of the floor in front of Will, although she did let out a loud gasp.

"Hello Harry, Will." She greeted. "Looking for something?"

"Yeah." Will said, feeling cross because of her entrance. "So how have you been?"

"Well enough I suppose. Harry, why haven't you visited me?"

Harry, who was now examining sinks, ignored her.

"We're busy Myrtle, sixth year and all that." Will answered quickly.

But Myrtle disregarded her comment. "Well Harry?"

"What Will said." Harry replied in a grumble. "Will, I found it, the entrance."

Will rushed over to stand next to Harry, and saw the snake picture etched onto the sink. "So now what?"

"Now, I open it."

Will nodded.

Harry stared intently at the snake craving, but blinked and looked around. "Something's not right."

"What do you mean?" Will asked, ignoring Myrtle's loud sniffs and whines about them ignoring her.

"Light, I need light." Harry said.

"Would lumos work?" Will asked, taking out her wand.

"No, it needs to be candle light." Harry replied.

Will nodded again, and looked around. She spotted a large candleholder standing by the door to the room. "Not a problem." She put away her wand, walked over to the holder, and dragged it over to the sink.

Harry watched, slightly puzzled. "You could just use magic you know."

"I'm used to using my own strength." Will answered, pulling out her wand again, and pointing it at a candle. "Inflamarie."

The candle, and she lit two more.

"That enough?" Will asked Harry.

"Yeah, that's good." Harry answered. "Okay…"

A minute passed, during which Harry tried looking at the snake from different angles, Will keeping silent.

Finally, Harry spoke.

His voice came as a strange low hiss that gave Will goose bumps.

'That must be Parseltounge.' Will thought chillingly. 'I never thought, never dream, I'd actually hear it.'

Harry stopped speaking when they heard a dull thud from behind the sink, the tap glowed brilliant white, and, slowly, the sink started to sink into the floor.

Will watched with wide eyes. "Harry?"

"Don't worry, this is what happened last time." Harry said.

"Last time?"

"I'll explain later."

Will nodded, but Harry didn't see because he gaze was fixed on the sink. 'There's still so much I don't know about him.'

Finally, the sink had fully disappeared; leaving a wide black opening that seemed to be a huge pipe.

"So… Should I tell the others to come?" Will asked.

"Not yet, we should check out the chamber and see if it's safe first." Harry replied.

"All right." Will said, almost in a whisper.

"I'll go first."

"Okay, Harry-"

"Yeah?"

"…It's just, after this is all over, like you said, I really do want to talk."

Harry turned to her, looking right into her eyes from the first time in weeks. "I know."

Will nodded, trying to swallow the lump in her throat.

Harry turned back, walked to the opening, swung his legs in, and paused. "I never thought I'd do this again."

And then he let go, and disappeared.

Will waited a moment, before following, making herself let go after realizing just how dark the tunnel really was.

She shot down the tunnel, letting out a scream every time she was momentarily air bourn after hitting small bumps.

She finally shot out the end, skidding to a halt about three feet away from the ending.

Harry, who already had slime on him, helped Will up, and they looked around.

"Well, that was some ride." Will said.

"Yeah, I know." Harry replied.

"Should I call them now?"

"Yeah."

'Hey, Taranee, can you hear me?' Will thought, concentrating on making contact.

'Loud and clear Will, what's going on?' Taranee replied.

'Harry and I are in the chamber. Bring everyone over and we'll start off to the hide out.'

'All right, we'll be there in about five minutes.'

At that Taranee shut down the link, and Will turned to Harry.

"She said they'll be here in about five minutes." Will said.

"Okay, so we wait." Harry answered.

* * *

Elyon came to, slowly opening her eyes, in a dimly lit cave.

She groaned as she turned over, ignoring her throbbing ankle, to try and fall asleep, feeling like she did not want to be awake, and she certainly didn't want to know why she felt that way.

"Hey, I know you're awake." A voice said.

Elyon's eyes flew open as that voice brought everything that had happened that day floating back into her memory.

The trick, Cornelia and Caleb trying she save her, Cedric taking her by surprise after she thought she had defeated him, Malfoy knocking her out, saying it would be better if she wasn't awake when they reached their destination.

She sat up, and glared towards the speaker.

Only now did she see her full surroundings, and she didn't like them.

She was in a small corner of a large cave, the corner cut off from the rest by steel bars she knew were enchanted.

A single torch lit the small corner, which had a mattress off to one side for sleeping (Elyon, however, was not on the mattress, it looked as though she must've rolled off of it while she was asleep), and there was a tray of food next to Elyon, with some kind of stew, a dry piece of bread, an apple, and a cup of water.

Though Elyon was starving, she ignored the food to glare at her captor.

Draco Malfoy.

"You should eat you know. You haven't eaten since breakfast yesterday." Malfoy said.

"Where am I?" Elyon demanded.

"I can't tell you that."

"Why am I here?"

"Can't tell you that either."

"What time is it?"

"Almost midnight."

"Who's in charge?"

"Sorry, can't tell."

Elyon frowned, looked down at the floor, and was surprised to find that she was still in her simple white dress, though it was torn and dirty now. She felt around her head for her crown, but it was gone.

"Well, what can you tell me?" Elyon asked.

"I can tell you your brother's here." Malfoy replied.

Elyon folded her arms. "I already knew that."

"Well, that's all I can tell you."

Elyon stood up and walked over to the front of the cage, arms still folded. "You're a traitor, you do know that right?"

Malfoy, who was sitting outside of the cage on an old wooden chair, looked away from her. "I didn't have a choice."

"That bull Draco! You always have a choice!" Elyon shouted, stomping the floor.

Draco stood up, knocking over the chair, glaring fiercely at Elyon. "No I didn't! He would have killed them Elyon! He would've killed my mother and my father! I couldn't let that happen!"

"So why didn't you ask for help!"

"My father's one of them Elyon! A fucking Death Eater!" Draco shouted. "Who would listen to me! The son of a Death Eater!"

"Dumbledore would have helped!" Elyon cried, unfolding her arms, and clenching her fists.

"Dumbledore! You think I could've gone to Dumbledore!" Draco exclaimed. "He's the reason all this is happening!"

"Take that back! Dumbledore's trying to make this all stop!"

"No I won't! He invited you to Hogwarts, so it's his fault you're here! His fault I had to do this!"

"It's no one's fault but your father's! He joined Voldemort! He dragged you into this with him! But, Draco, it's your fault you betrayed me, Hogwarts, and everything it stands for! You betrayed yourself!"

"How can you think I want this Elyon!" Draco practically screamed. "This wasn't what I wanted at all! I- I wanted- I don't even remember what I wanted anymore!"

Elyon's face softened, and she unclenched her fists. "You don't even remember what you wanted?"

"Being a Death Eater will do that to you, it destroys you until all that's left is what he wants from you." Draco said quietly.

Elyon wanted to reach out to him, but she forced herself not to. "I- I know the feeling."

Draco looked at her questioningly.

Elyon sighed. "Phobos, he kidnapped me, he tricked me, lied to me, made me prisoner to my own thoughts. I believed every word he said, and I turned against my dearest friends. Against myself."

"So that's the story then, the real story."

Elyon nodded. "Yes, I was a traitor and didn't even realize it, I was tricked, blind to the truth."

Draco was silent.

Elyon laughed quietly. "And I was tricked, blinded, once again. And by the person I wanted to trust the most, just like Phobos."

"But, Elyon, I did want you to trust me."

"So you could bring me here!"

"No, Elyon, I wanted, against all logic, for us to be friends."

"Foolish wasn't it?"

"Yes, yes, suppose it was."

This time, Elyon did reach out to Malfoy, and took his hand through the bars.

"I'm just as foolish as you then." Elyon said. "To think, a Gryffindor and a Slytherin, that the two houses could ever resolve their differences."

Draco lightly squeezed Elyon's hand. "Maybe not, but things will change. For better or for worse."

"So, who's side are you on anyway Draco?" Elyon asked.

Draco paused, before answering. "Mine."

**End Chapter Twenty-Six**


	27. A Witches Patronus

**Disclaimer:**I do not, and never will, own the wonderful story that is Harry Potter, or W.i.t.c.h or any of its characters.

**Chapter Twenty-Six**

**A W.i.t.c. Patronus**

Having got everyone inside the chamber, and then successfully started appearating them out, Will and Harry waited until everyone else had gone, before Will used the Heart to transport her and Harry out of the dank and dark chamber, which Will had no regrets about leaving behind.

When she and Harry felt their feet on solid ground, they opened their eyes and looked around.

They were standing at the base of a group of many grassy tall hills, surrounded by miles of meadow, which were all being searched by students and teachers alike.

It was dark, and though the fall moon in the sky was bright, Will could see wands illuminated all around, and a few magically lit fires burning in the meadow feet away.

Will lit her own wand, not wanting to use the Heart again, which had just sunk back into her right palm, and looked around for her fellow guardians, but the pressing darkness made it impossible.

"Miss Vandom!" A voice close by called. "Mr. Potter, come here, if you would."

Harry lit his wand as well, and he and Will made their was over to Professor McGonagall, who was finishing a conversation with Professor Filtwick.

"Potter, Vandom, I should hope this will go faster with more people."

"I think it will Professor, if Cornelia puts her powers to good use, she'll find them in no time." Will replied seriously. "And then-"

"And then we will wait until morning." McGonagall interrupted.

"Morning? But… but… Professor, Elyon is the captive, we can't just-" Will started to protested.

McGonagall gave Will and stern look. "Miss Vandom, we can't just run into a cave full of Death Eaters when we have had no sleep. In five minutes, I'm going to call off the search until morning, and we'll all get some sleep."

Will opened her mouth to protest further, but Professor McGonagall turned and walked away briskly to speak to Professor Snape.

"Probably for the best. Death Eaters like the dark; it's their favorite cover. In daylight, at least we'll be able to see them." Harry spoke up.

Will turned to him, a bit surprised her hadn't gone to find Ron and Hermione. "I don't think I'll be able to sleep though, not knowing what might happen."

Harry nodded in agreement. "Same here, but we should try." He motioned to the left, where Ginny and Colin were lying side-by-side, asleep, as if to prove his point.

Will sighed, but smiled. "I guess."

Even the teachers were breaking off examining the hills, and lying down in the grass, save for McGonagall, Snape, Sprout, and Flitwick, who seemed to be keeping watch.

Will finally saw Cornelia, kneeling with both hands planted on a hill, eyes shut tight in focus, ignoring the students walking to find a place to sleep around her. Will was about to walk over to try and persuade her friend to rest, as well as to console her, but Caleb beat her to it.

He knelt, and pulled Cornelia's hands away from the hill, which made her open her eyes, looking surprised. He said something to her, which Will was glad she couldn't hear, and Cornelia sighed, and stood up with Caleb, letting him lead her by the hand out into the grassy meadow.

Irma and Neville were sitting in the grass together, talking quietly, seeming to have decided they wouldn't be able to sleep, although, by the way Irma's eyes were dropping, she would probably be asleep within minutes.

Ron, Hermione, Dean, Taranee, Seamus, Hay Lin, and Luna had all sat down in a circle, gazing up at the star-studded sky, Hermione occasionally prodding a small fire with her wand.

"Shall we join them?" Harry asked, in a whisper.

Will nodded, tucking that stray lock of hair behind her ears.

They walked over to the small group, which instantly moved to make a gap so they could sit down besides each other.

For what seemed like hours, but was in fact only minutes, they sat and looked up at the stars, pointing out some of the brightest ones, and what their names were.

Harry only stared at one star, like he had done so many nights since that last summer, and that one star was Sirius, the dog star, only to Harry, lately, it had meant more than any other star.

'Is he really alive?' Harry wondered. 'Can he really be alive?'

Hay Lin fell asleep first, leaning against Seamus, with Seamus' cloak around her shoulders ("You'll catch cold in that outfit" he had said), mouth open slightly as she breathed softly.

Luna and Hermione feel asleep next, both lying back in the grass, Luna curled up a little as if to keep herself warm.

People walked by during the silent few minutes between the time Hermione fell asleep, and the time Ron lay back in the grass to join her, but Harry didn't know, or look to find out who they were.

Teachers, he guessed.

He heard a faint murmur from next to him, and looked, to find Will asleep, lying on her side, that same lock of hair across her forehead.

Without thinking, he reached over and tucked the lock of hair out of her face, and she stirred, but did not wake.

Taranee and Dean were also now asleep in the grass, looking like they had drifted off while cuddling.

After a few more minutes of silence, Seamus gently lay Hay Lin down, and lay beside her, before long asleep himself.

Finally, Harry abandoned his watch on the stars, lay back next to Will in the soft grass, and slipped to sleep.

* * *

Harry frowned at the small balding man in front of him, he was not pleased with him in the slightest, but he was still of some use, and so he would not kill him.

"And can you tell me why the spell isn't working Wormtail?" Harry asked, in a high, cold voice.

"I- I don't kn- know my Lord." The small man, Wormtail, stammered. "I f- followed your instructions. We- we must be missing something."

Harry let out a noise of contempt, and turned to the young tall man next to him. "What do you know of this?"

The young man, who had flowing white blonde hair and a bread, with cold ice blue eyes, wearing black robes, also frowned. "The spell hasn't been used in over two thousand years. I merely know it was forbidden by the Oracle himself, as well as the first Queen of Meridian."

"You mean to tell me you have no knowledge of the spell?" Harry hissed.

"I know only what my parents told me as a child." The young man said, folding his arms, hate seeping into his cold voice.

"Fine, fine, we'll just have to keep trying until we get it right." Harry snapped, turning his back on the young man. "Your sister, would she know anything?"

"Nothing. She has only been Queen a short while." The man said. "Plus, I doubt anyone would want to teach her such magic. They had enough of that while I ruled."

"I see." Harry paused, a smirk playing across his lips as he thought of a way to taunt his so-called partner. "Your younger sister, would you like to see her Phobos?"

The young man was silent, but Harry was all too aware of the other younger blonde man, sitting in the shadows, shifting at the very mention of the girl.

"Ah, Cedric, would you like the see the Princess?" Harry sneered.

"Yes, yes, send Cedric. I have no time to waste on my sister." The first man said harshly.

The man sitting in the shadows stood, bowed and left the room.

'Love, what a useless feeling.' Harry thought scornfully. 'What a foolish man, that Cedric, in love with the very girl his master is working so hard to kill.'

"Now then." The young man breathed. "Shall we get back to work?"

* * *

Harry's eyes flew open, and he sat up right, his scar burning, but not as painfully as he was sure it had been while he had been asleep.

Without think, just knowing it was the right thing to do, he turned and gently shook Will, who was on her side turned away from him now, not even surprised by the fact that she had changed back into her Hogwarts robes, apparently by magic while she had been asleep.

"Will! Will, wake up!" He whispered.

Will moaned, rolled over, and opened her eyes. "Harry?"

"Will, I just saw him! Voldemort, talking to Elyon's brother!" Harry whispered urgently.

Will's eyes widened, and she too sat up. "Phobos? Where? How?"

"I- I'll explain when all this is over."

But Will shook her head. "Harry, when are we going to stop lying to each other?"

Harry paused, then sighed. "All right, but not here. Come with me."

He helped Will to her feet, and lead her, by the hand, away from the still sleeping group, and to a lone tree, a good twenty feet away.

Will sat down in the grass, looking up at Harry expectantly.

Harry sighed again, and sat down next to her. "Where should I start?"

"Only where you think the important part begins." Will said.

"Well… my parents, James and Lily, were both members of the Order of the Phoenix, and were, as I've heard it put, a threat to Voldemort. They went into hiding, with Sirius Black as their secret keeper. About the same time, a prophecy was made, now I don't remember the whole thing, but it went something like 'The Dark Lord shall mark him as his equal', and the last part was 'neither can live while the other survives'." Harry explained.

"Mark him as his… equal?" Will said.

Harry was silent.

Slowly, looking unsure, Will reached up and pulled back Harry's bangs, revealing the scar. "The mark…?"

"Yeah, that's right." Harry said. "It was about me."

Will took her hand away, looking at him confused.

"The night, when Voldemort tried to kill me but couldn't, he left some of… himself in me Will. That's why I can speak Parseltounge, that's why I can see things Voldemort does."

Will was frozen, her face stone still.

"Will?"

"Harry I… I…" Without another word, she threw herself at him, her arms wrapping around his shoulders, wet tears running silently down her face and getting onto Harry's cheek.

Harry blushed, utterly confused. "Will?"

"I wish I could understand Harry." Will whispered. "I really do wish I could, but I can't. I'm sorry."

"No! Will, it's better that you can't!" Harry said, gently pushing her away, and holding her firmly by her shoulders. "Will, I don't want you to understand! Me and only me, it's best this way."

Will sniffed, and bit her lip.

"Will, please don't cry. It's just the way it is. It's been this way since I was a baby, it's just how I am."

"But it shouldn't have to be 'just how you are'." Will replied, sniffing again. "Harry, I guess… I can sort of understand after all."

"What are you talking about?"

Will paused, anxiously looking at the ground. "Well, I said we shouldn't lie anymore…"

Harry was silent, waiting for her to say whatever was on her mind.

"There have been many guardians over the years, the last guardians were a group of girls, Cassidy, Halinor, Kadma, Yan Lin-"

"Lin! You don't mean Professor Lin?" Harry interrupted.

"Yeah, it was her. She was the guardian of air before Hay Lin, and the one who kept the Heart until it was passed down to me. As I was saying, there was a fifth guardian, Nerissa, who abused the power she was given. The Oracle took the Heart away from her, and gave it to Cassidy, but Nerissa, totally corrupted by power, murdered Cassidy to get the Heart back." Will paused, looking pained, as if she had actually seen these events.

"Murder? But I thought the guardians were supposed to protect." Harry said, shocked and surprised.

"She wasn't a guardian Harry, not when she murdered. She was imprisoned, but broke out, and came after me and the other guardians a few years ago, determined to get the Heart back from me. In the end, she died, but it still scares me, thinking that I might've done the same thing. We were both keepers of the Heart, so I still wonder if someday, will I also be corrupted?"

"No!" Harry said firmly, grabbing Will's wrist, which made her stare at him, her eyes wide. "It won't happen for the same reason I won't do what Voldemort did. You're not the same! Dumbledore told me, back in my second year, when I started seeing things that made Voldemort and me similar, that what made me different was the choicesI make."

"Choices?" Will asked, blinking.

"Yes, choices. Will, think about it, I'm pretty damn sure you've already made a hundred better choices than this Nerissa person. You have the Heart everyday, but you haven't used it for the things she did have you?" Harry replied.

Will thought for a long minute, then smiled. "R- right. You're right."

"See? Now, there's something else, there's a spell I need to teach you." Harry said, letting go of Will's wrist.

"A spell?" Will asked. "Now?"

"Yes now. I have a feeling you're going to need it."

Harry and Will stood up, and both took out their wands, Will looking at Harry for instruction.

"All right, I should tell you what this spell's for. Have you ever heard of Dementors?" Harry said.

Will nodded. "Yeah, but I never want to see one."

"Nobody does, but Voldemort uses them regularly. So, you might have to fight them off tonight, and that's what this spell is for. It's called a Patronus charm."

"Patronus?" Will repeated. "What's it do?"

"It's like a shield between you and the Dementor. To create one, you have to think of the happiest memory you can, and then say the spell 'Expecto Patronum'." Harry explained. "It will take the form of an animal, and it's different for every wizard and witch."

"Right, Expecto Patronum." Will said. "I'll give it a try."

Harry took a few steps back and Will closed her eyes, a look of focus coming to her face.

When she opened her eyes, she raised her wand, and cried "Expecto Patronum!"

Dense silver mist spouted out of her wand tip, but it had no form, and it quickly disappeared.

Will frowned. "Shoot, not nearly powerful enough."

"No, that was good for a first try. Some people can't even do one. It's really advanced magic. Took me forever." Harry replied. "What were you remembering?"

"Well, the first time I ever transformed into my guardian form." Will answered, blushing a bit.

"I'm not sure if that's happy enough. Try something else."

Will nodded, turned, raised her wand again, and cried "Expecto Patronum!"

Even heavy mist shot out this time, taking some form, but the shape was blurred and losing the shape fast.

Will sighed as the vapor dissipated. "Still not happy enough I guess. The first time we defeated Phobos."

Harry shrugged. "I dunno."

Will bit her lip as she thought. 'Something happy, the happiest you've ever felt. Come on Will, think!'

Then out of nowhere an almost forgotten scene appeared in her memory, and it almost felt like she was reliving it.

There was snow on the ground; she was looking down on Harry's face, which was a red as hers since she landed on top of him.

Then the sudden impulse, as she knew it would come, and she lowered her head until her lips touched Harry's, and a moment later she pulled back, flustered by her impulsiveness.

She got up, feeling terrible, and then, again, Harry's lips on hers, then the laughter that came after ward.

She opened her eyes, pointed her wand again, and said loudly and firmly, "Expecto Patronum!"

This time a small sliver animal shot out of the wand and danced around Will, whose eyes were filled with tears when she recognized the shape. 'A door mouse.'

The door mouse disappeared slowly as the other memory of the speeding car the took her beloved pet away replaced the kiss.

Harry was beaming at her. "That was unbelievable!"

Will smiled. "Thanks. So am I ready to face the Death Eaters?"

Harry's smiled lessened, although it not leave his face completely. "Will, I don't think anyone's ever ready to face them, all we can do is try."

Will nodded. "Right, try."

**End Chapter Twenty-Six**


	28. The Battle Begins

**Disclaimer:**I do not own W.i.t.c.h. or Harry Potter.

**Chapter Twenty-Eight**

**The Battle Begins**

Dawn came all too soon, and the light woke Will, who was lying in the grass, head propped up on her school robes, which she had bunched together as a pillow.

Harry was not next to her as he had been when she had fallen asleep, but was lying a good distance away in the damp grass.

Will sat up, and sleepily rubbed her eyes, then stretched, and looked around.

The sun was still rather low in the sky, barely shinning over the tops of the forest in the distance, and it looked so peaceful.

Will sighed as the memories of why she was there, in the grassy meadow, came flooding back to her.

"Phobos… We'll get you this time. That's a promise." Will said, frowning at her bundled up robes.

The only sound that followed her promise was the faint sound of birds singing in the far away trees, but there was no wind, no chattering on squirrels, nothing else.

Will grabbed her robes, and stood, walking to wake Harry after a final sigh.

Will knelt next to Harry, who was lying with his back to her, and reached out to shake him.

"I'm already awake." Harry said when Will put her hand on his shoulder, but he didn't turn to her.

"Did you sleep at all?" Will asked.

"A little bit." Harry answered.

Will sighed yet again. "We'd better get back, they'll be wondering where we are."

Harry sat up, and his green eyes met her brown ones. "Yeah…"

Will blushed, stood quickly, and helped Harry to his feet.

"It'll be okay." Harry said, a little awkwardly, as if he was trying to comfort her, but he didn't know what to say.

"I know." Will replied, and they both set off through the field.

After a minute a silence, Harry said, "It's so still."

"I know, I don't like it." Will answered.

"It's the calm before the storm, to put it dramatically." Harry said.

Will shivered, and pulled her robes tighter around her. "Weird how it's always like that, before a fight, I mean."

"Yeah…"

"Will!"

Will turned towards the voice, coming for her left.

Cornelia was running across the meadow, in her guardian uniform, her long hair bouncing behind her because of her speed.

"Cornelia?" Will asked, blinking in surprise.

"Yes, but Will, I found them! It's starting!" Cornelia cried, halting in front of her friend. "They're trying to get in now! Professor Dumbledore sent me to get you!"

"Dumbledore's here?" Harry asked, sounding surprised and relieved.

"Yes, he just arrived an hour ago." Cornelia answered, her eyes burning with anxiety.

"Let's go." Will said, understanding Cornelia's want, no, more like need to save Elyon.

"Will, it'll be quicker if we fly, they're clear on the other side of the meadow." Cornelia urged.

"Why didn't you fly?" Will asked.

"Did fly, but I landed when I saw you two." Cornelia answered. "Will, please-"

"All right, give me a second." Will sighed.

Will closed her eyes, felt that familiar surge of magic, and when it was done, she opened her eyes.

"So what am I supposed to do if you're flying?" Harry asked.

"We'll carry you." Will replied, tugging at her skirt.

"What?"

"We're a lot stronger than we look." Cornelia said with a smirk.

Harry looked skeptical, but didn't argue.

Will took one of Harry's arms, and Cornelia took his other arm.

"Ready?" Will asked.

Cornelia nodded, and Harry shut his eyes.

"One…"

Harry bit his lip.

"Two…"

Cornelia frowned at Harry, who was muttering something under his breath.

"Three!"

Will and Cornelia leapt off the ground, and beat their wings hard to get into the air.

"It's okay, we're not going to crash." Cornelia said, now that they were a good twenty feet in the air. "I thought you liked flying."

"I do, but this is different than a broom stick." Harry replied, eyes now open.

"It is, I like it better." Cornelia said.

"You're the one with the wings!" Harry snapped.

Will rolled her eyes. "It's a little hard to fly with you two bickering!"

"We weren't bickering. Cornelia responded.

Will frowned at Cornelia, she sighed, and returned her attention to flying.

They flew on in silence until Cornelia signaled to Will to descend.

They set Harry down, and then flew a few more feet before touching down themselves.

"Will! Cornelia!" Hay Lin's voice rang out.

A short ways in front of them, there was a mass of mass of black from the Hogwarts student robes, with brightly colored robes of the teachers spotting the black crowd.

To the side, the other three guardians stood, in their bright uniforms, waiting, with Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Colin, Neville, Luna, and Dean.

Will, Cornelia, and Harry rushed over to their friends.

"What's going on? Why aren't you going in?" Cornelia asked.

"We were waiting for you guys, or rather, Cornelia." Irma answered, her blue eyes almost as anxious as Cornelia's.

"What! Why!" Cornelia cried.

Irma opened her mouth to reply, but another voice beat her to it.

"Because, Miss Hale, there are a number of spells preventing us from getting any where near a possible opening, however, a guardian could probably fly through these spells with little trouble."

Cornelia gulped, being addressed directly by Professor Dumbledore, under these circumstances, was quite unnerving. "B- but there were three other guardians here, sir."

"True." Dumbledore replied with a smile. "But you are the guardian of earth, the only one who can make a way in for us. Since Voldemort has never fought against your magic, I do not believe he can repel it."

Cornelia nodded, understanding.

Taranee, however, pointed out a problem. "Phobos has fought out magic before though."

Dumbledore looked at Taranee meaningfully. "I know nothing of Phobos' magic, but I trust Miss Hale to find a way around it."

Cornelia nodded, a look of pride flashing across her face at Dumbledore's confidence in her, and turned to Will.

"What?" Will asked, confused.

"I might need backup if Phobos put any spells up." The blonde answered.

"Okay, I'll have to Heart at the ready."

And with that, Cornelia got a running start, leapt into the air, and flew towards a clump of trees.

Will waited, her right hand clenched into a fist, for a sign that Cornelia was having trouble.

Sure enough, a few seconds later, Cornelia dropped a couple feet out of the air, telling Will there was an enchantment in place.

But when Will was about to give her more power, Trainee said, "Cornelia says not to give her more power."

Will blinked at Taranee. "What? Why not?"

"She thinks they'll find out we're here if you do."

"What does she think that?" Will asked, feeling annoyed that Taranee wasn't getting to the point.

"In charms this year, we've been learning about detection spells, remember?"

Will racked her memory, and remembered it from back in December, before all the trouble took up her time, and she also remembered she hadn't gotten a very outstanding grade on that essay.

Apparently, Cornelia had gotten a good grade.

"So there's a detection spell in place?" Will asked.

Taranee nodded. "And a strong one too, apparently. They might already know we're here."

Will sighed, in frustration because she couldn't help Cornelia, and at her forgetfulness. "Fine, but at the first sign of trouble, I'm using the Heart, but don't tell Cornelia, she'll never agree."

Taranee looked like her wanted to retort, but stopped herself, and moved over to talk to Dean.

Will looked around, desperate for something to distract her.

Dumbledore was still five or six paces away from her, now in conversation with Madame Hooch, but suspected he had heard what had just been discussed between her and Taranee, but why he hadn't said anything she could only guess.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione were gone, lost in the sea of students, but Luna, Ginny, and Colin were still standing with the guardians, as were Neville, Dean, and Seamus, who was with, of course, Hay Lin.

Will realized that maybe Harry hadn't forgiven her after all, and Will suddenly felt very uncomfortable as she thought about the pervious night.

'Stupid Will, what the hell was I thinking?'

She didn't have much time to think about what she had been thinking, because at that moment there was a loud boom, followed by the cries of surprise.

Cornelia was no longer in the air, or anywhere else to be found, and there was a huge hole in the ground, wide enough for an army to charge through.

Will groaned as she realized that was exactly what the hole was for.

'I'll have to Cornelia one of those famous talks we both love so much.' Will thought sarcastically.

"Will?" Hay Lin was looking at Will questioningly. "Did you tell her to do that?"

"No." Will answered with a sigh.

""Well, what should we do now?" Irma asked, folding her arms.

"There's really only one thing we can do." Will said, turning to face the battle she knew was coming. "We have to go in."

Behind her, she heard the other guardians step forward to stand in a line, but the line wasn't just her, Irma, Taranee, and Hay Lin.

Will was surprised to see Ginny, Colin, Luna, Neville, Dean, and Seamus also standing with the guardians.

Colin was the one who noticed Will's surprised stare. "We might not be guardians, or soldiers, but we're willing to help Elyon, and fight along side you. We're all Hogwarts students after all."

Ginny gave Colin a looked of admiration, which was followed by a peck on the cheek, which made Colin turn bright red.

Will smiled as she looked forward again, feeling strangely proud of the maturity of this fifth year Gryffindor she hardly ever talked to.

She started to run forward, and beside her, the others followed.

Dumbledore had been watching, and smiled to himself as he watched them run into the hole in the ground. 'Such fine young women, the guardians are.' He thought simply as he went to round up the teachers to organize and charge of their own.

Meanwhile, Harry was in the back of the throng of students, with Ron and Hermione, discussing something rather personal.

"I just don't know how you feel about her." He muttered.

Hermione gave him a disbelieving look. "Yes, you do know. Harry, how can this change everything about your feelings toward her? Haven't you waited long enough to be happy?"

Ron looked uncomfortable. "I don't really have much to say on the topic, actually."

Harry was silent.

"Hey, Hermione, the guardians just went in!" Lavender called out as she made her way over to them. "Never seen anything like it, Cornelia just moved her arms and there was a huge hole in the ground."

"What? They went in already?" Hermione said. "Come on you two, we'd better go help."

Ron followed Hermione and Lavender through the crowd, which had lessened a bit, Harry guessed from others going to help as well.

Harry waited a long minute before going after them, still thinking about Hermione's scolding.

* * *

Elyon gasped and looked up at the dirt ceiling as it shook, as a loud boom echoed through the cave. She stood, and brushed the dirt of her robes. "What's going on?"

Draco had gotten up out of his chair, and was also looking at the ceiling. "I don't know."

"Aren't you going to ask you Death Eater friends?" Elyon said bitterly, but with a tone of pity.

"No, someone'll come in and tell." Draco said. "I have an idea, lye down, and pretend to be asleep."

"Why?" Elyon asked.

"Just do it, all right? I promise you, nothing bad will happen." Draco snapped.

Elyon frowned, but lay on her dirty mattress, closed her eyes and evened her breathing.

A moment later, she heard someone race into the room. "Someone's gotten in!"

"How?" Draco asked, pretending to sound surprised.

"It's probably the guardians, you stay here until you're called, someone has to guard this brat!" The man's voice snapped. "How the hell can she sleep?"

"Dunno." Draco's voice answered.

"Fine, just stay here." There were hurried footsteps, and Elyon waited until they were gone before she opened her eyes and sat up.

"Okay, I'm going let you out now." Draco said.

"What!" Elyon exclaimed. "Won't they kill you!"

"I don't give a damn, I'd like to see them try anyway!" Draco snapped, walking up to the steel bars and tapping them over and over with his wand. "Besides, better to die knowing that I'm on the side I want to be on."

Elyon blinked, and stood, walking over the bars. "Draco…"

"Dammit! I can't undo the spell!" Draco yelled, kicking the bars. "The spell's too strong."

Elyon sighed. "At least you tried."

"What the hell are you two doing!"

Draco and Elyon turned, and Elyon screamed when she saw Cedric, tall and frightening in his snake form.

Draco stood to front of Elyon, glaring at Cedric. "Shouldn't you be fighting?"

"I can do what I want, stupid boy." Cedric said, his eyes on Elyon, who was giving him a look that could have burned a hole in a piece of steel if possible. "You were trying to let her out, weren't you boy?"

Draco didn't answer, but the second of surprised he showed was answer enough.

"You dare to betray Prince Phobos and your Dark Lord?" Cedric hissed.

"Damn right I do!" Draco shouted. "Prince Phobos? He's not a Prince, he can't be, not if Elyon's the true ruler!"

"Shut up Draco, you'll get yourself killed!" Elyon whispered harshly in his ear.

"What did I just tell you about that?" Draco whispered back. "Besides, you're safe, they need you alive."

"That wasn't my point!" Elyon snapped, tugging on the back of his robes in frustration.

"This is where my loyalties lie." Malfoy said calmly.

"Dammit Draco, if you're loyal to me, I order you to shut up!" Elyon cried.

Cedric paused, watching them.

Elyon had grabbed Malfoy's hand through the bars, and was squeezing it gently; waiting for the blow she knew would come.

But it didn't come.

"Move over, boy." Cedric snapped, pushing Malfoy out of the way.

Elyon cried out and reached out for Malfoy and he lost his balance and fell over, hitting his head.

"Shit!" Malfoy yelled, as he sat up and rubbed his head, and Elyon sighed in relief. "That hurt!"

"Shut up, boy." Cedric snapped, putting his hand on the bars, making Elyon quickly stumble backwards to get away from him.

"What the hell are you-" Malfoy started, but he stopped when the bars disappeared from in between Cedric's fingers.

"Queen Elyon, I believe you'll want to help the guardians, won't you?" Cedric said.

Elyon blinked up at him, but didn't step forward.

"They will need as much help as possible." Cedric urged.

Still Elyon did nothing, but frowned a little. "Why should I trust you? You're the reason I'm in this mess."

Cedric blinked. "What about the boy? He's also the reason you're in-"

"Don't pin this on someone else! I'm talking about you right now!" Elyon roared, pointing an accusing finger at Cedric.

Draco stood up and rushed to her side. "Look, maybe we should just go with it for now." He whispered. "I mean, we're not gonna get past him ourselves."

"I could knock him out flat." Elyon replied, reaching up to her head to tap her crown, but frown when she remembered it wasn't there. "Crap, never mind. I can't knock him out flat without my crown."

"Why?"

"Tell you later, basically, it gives me a huge power boost." Elyon said. "Oh well, like you said, we can't get out with him."

Elyon looked seriously up at Cedric. "All right, since it seems like we don't have much choice, but one wrong move, and I'll kick you into next week."

Cedric sighed in annoyed at Elyon's choice of words, but nodded. "Agreed."

"Good, come on Draco, let's get outta here." Elyon said firmly, grabbing Draco's hand, and starting off.

Cedric quickly moved in front of them. "I had better go first, I never know who's on patrol."

"Fine." Elyon said simply.

Cedric returned his attention to the tunnel in front of them.

"Why so stubborn?" Malfoy whispered to her.

"I'm a Queen, I can't forgive so easily. It's expected of me, and besides, I have no reason to be friendly to him. The stubbornness is to show him I'm serious."

Malfoy nodded, and was silent.

"I hope we find the guardians soon. The whole thing might be too much for them to handle alone." Elyon noted.

Malfoy merely nodded. He didn't know what else he could do.

**End Chapter Twenty-Eight**


	29. With You

A/N: Please forgive me for the long wait with this chapter. It was actually harder to write than I thought it would be, and I got such bad writer's block at times, as well as the fact that I've been trying to study harder, which, thankfully as pulled my Japanese grade up from a C to an A-.

And, to add to my inability to write, I came down with a rather bad cold, which left me barely able to get out of bed for a week, let alone pick up a pen. I'm making a speedy recovery, and although I'm still weak, I'm trying to make up for that week I lost.

If any of you were wondering, my first date never happened. Turned out the guy just wanted to hang out, therefore, I'm still waiting for that first date I was hoping for. Talk about disappointment.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. The title for this chapter came from the Linkin Park song "With You", because I couldn't think up anything else.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter or W.i.t.c.h. Enjoy anyway please.

**Chapter Twenty-Nine**

**With You**

Will, the guardians (minus Cornelia of course), Ginny, Luna, Colin, Dean, Seamus, and Neville crept along the long tunnel, all alert and nervous.

They had met surprisingly little resistance going in, which made them suspect that at any moment, around any turn, they could come face to face with a swarm of Death Eaters.

"Will!"

Cornelia's voice rang out through the tunnel, echoing in the gloom.

Will stopped, the little group halting behind her.

Cornelia's voice sounded distant, and panicked, which worry Will immensely.

"Hay Lin, can you tell me how far away she is." Will asked, eyes still watching ahead.

Hay Lin nodded, though Will didn't see it, and closed her eyes, letting sliver magic flow from her finger tips, making the sound carry a bit longer, and enchanting it so she could tell the distance.

"About twenty feet ahead, in an open space, probably a cave, and there are other voices too, men, angry men." Hay Lin said, opening her eyes.

"Great." Will muttered. "Death Eaters."

"How many?" Taranee asked.

"I couldn't really tell, they were really mixed together. Could be between ten and one hundred." Hay Lin answered.

"Let's go. We can't wait." Will decided, starting off quietly down the tunnel, the others following without replying.

Finally, after jogging down the tunnel for another few minutes, they skidded to a halt when they reached the main cave, and stayed as well hidden as they could in the tunnel.

The cave was huge, almost as tall as the Great Hall back at school, and wide enough to fit at least three of the four house tables into, making Will realize that the whole thing couldn't possibly be natural, it must've had some spells used on it to crave out more space, and that they must've traveled farther underground if the cave was so high.

And, unfortunately, it was filled with Death Eaters.

There were too many to count, all crowded together, all focused on Cornelia who was flying well above their heads, trying to leave as much air between her and the Death Eaters as possible while also trying to leave space to maneuver so she could avoid their spells.

"You guys stay here until Professor Dumbledore gets here, which I have no doubt he will be soon." Will whispered to all those in the party who were not guardians. "It's too dangerous until then."

"But-" Ginny started to protest.

"No buts. We have wings, and we've dealt with this kind of thing before." Will replied.

"So have we!" Colin snapped, a bit too loud.

"Hey! It's the other guardians!" An unseen Death Eater shouted.

Will swore under her breath before leaping into the air, Irma, Hay Lin, and Taranee behind her, while Luna, Neville, Seamus, Dean, Ginny and Colin retreated back into the tunnel.

"About time." Cornelia said, ducking under a beam of red light from the mass of Death Eaters below.

"Hey, give us a break. We can't move mountains you know." Hay Lin replied jokingly, sending a gust of air down into the cave, managing to knock some Death Eaters over.

"Cornelia, I hope you know you and I are going to have a chat later." Will said, looping around another jet of red light, and sending a ball of magenta swirling energy into the crowd of black robed men below.

Cornelia frowned. "They were going to find out anyway, and I'm pretty sure they all ready knew anyway, and I couldn't find a way in."

Will gave Cornelia an annoyed stare, which Cornelia returned with her usual stubborn glare.

"Will! We've got back up!" Irma cried.

Will whipped her head to look at the very tunnel which they had come through, and relief flooded her.

The members of the D.A., although about half the number had originally promised their services, lead by Ginny, Luna, Neville, and Colin, were pouring into the cave, pushing the Death Eaters back into other tunnels connected to the cave.

The guardians swooped down to fight with their friends and classmates, picking out the ones they wanted to fight with most out of the crowd, Cornelia joining Caleb, Hermione, and Ron, Hay Lin and Taranee with Seamus, Dean, and Hannah Abbot, Irma with Ginny, Luna, Neville and Colin, and finally Will flew down to kick a Death Eater in the face who'd snuck up behind Harry.

They had only a moment to look at each other when Harry turned, but that was enough to see the feelings they wouldn't speak in the others eyes, Harry seeing Will's hidden longing, and Will barely getting a glimpse of Harry's regret.

"Zone Eaters!" A random voice yelled.

Will didn't know who made that cry, a student or a Death Eater, but she knew what it meant for her side.

They were in deep trouble.

Will sent sparks of pink magic at the Death Eater closest to her, then punched him in the gut, leaving him gasping for air on the floor.

Harry sent stunning spells in every direction, hoping he wasn't hitting any students.

The chaos was over powering, there was hardly even enough room to fight, and, on top of that, more and more Death Eaters seemed to be flooding in all the time.

'Shit!' Will thought, biting her lower lip. 'If only there were some way to fight outside-'

BOOM!

Will looked up and then ducked to the ground, covering her head with her arms.

The top of the cave had been blown off, and the tunnels were changing, becoming wider, higher, creating more space, and then the tops of the tunnels opened above them in select places, allowing sunlight inside.

The battle had paused while this change took place, both Death Eaters and students watching, stunned and in awe.

Will cursed when she realized who the only person who had the power to do this was, and got to her feet to look for her.

"Cornel- AHHHH!" Will's cry turned into a scream as a Zone Eater hurled at her from no where, and she lost her balance, tumbling to the ground.

Her scream seemed to reminded everyone why they were crowded in a cave in the first place, which was now more of a huge gaping hole now, and they all returned to fighting.

Will scrambled to her feet, looking frantically for the Zone Eater, forgetting about her annoyance with Cornelia.

Unfortunately, she didn't see it until it was coming straight for her, mouth open in a roar that was drowned out by the surrounding chaos.

Forgetting that she had wings in her fear, she turned to run, knowing she couldn't get away fast enough.

"Will!"

Will didn't turned to see who had called to her, she barely even registered the voice, in fear that she would turn only to see the Zone Eater at her heels.

Then, she tripped.

It seemed very unfair to Will that she should be brought down by a simple stone in her path, and time seemed to slow down as she fell, and her eyes widened in horror as she heard the strange sound of a dog's howl mixed with the roar of a loin so close behind her.

'Is this the end?' Will thought, as she hit the ground after falling for what had been an eternity to her. 'Am I going to die here? Like this?' She closed her eyes against her tears, and waited for the pain of the Zone Eaters teeth.

But it didn't come.

"Stupefy!"

A hot jet of red light show over Will's head, and she instinctively pressed herself closer to the ground, opening her eyes to see who had rescued her, but she couldn't see who it was.

"Will! Will, are you all right!" A voice shouted, and she felt a hand on her back.

Will slowly pushed herself up, and turned. "Harry?"

Harry's panicked face flooded with relief. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine."

Will let Harry help her to her feet, and immediately heard the Zone Eater behind them, recovering from Harry's stunning spell.

Instead of using her own guardian powers, Will pulled her wand out of her boot, where she had hidden it earlier, turned, and yelled the first spell that came to mind.

"Expelliarmus!"

But hers wasn't the only voice that had cried the spell.

Although any students or Death Eaters standing in the way of her and Harry's spell were disarmed, their wands flying into the air, they failed to hit the Zone Eater.

Will and Harry would never be sure of what exactly had happened, even many years later.

All they would know was that just as their combined spell was about to hit the Zone Eater, and the Zone Eater slashed out, tearing what must've been a rip through time, they both heard something, heard voices they never thought they'd heard again.

Then they felt something pulling them into the tear, which the Zone Eater had all ready disappeared into, and without anything to hold onto but each other, they were sucked in.

Dumbledore, who had recently arrived on the scene, had notice Will and Harry's confrontation with the Zone Eater, but had confidence that the two could handle it, and had continued his duel with Lucis Malfoy.

Now, glancing at the spot where Harry and Will had been standing, wands aimed at the Zone Eater, he was just in time to see Will and Harry, clinging to each other, be dragged into the tear, which then closed, as if satisfied with Will and Harry as it's victims.

Only for a moment was Dumbledore concerned, but as he turned to disarm a Death Eater who was bearing down on an overwhelmed Luna, the concern was replaced with hope.

Will and Harry were strong, and as long as they were together, they'd be all right.

* * *

Will pressed her face against Harry's muscular chest, as he held her tightly, as they tumbled through time.

She wasn't sure at all how he felt about her being this close to him, when he was still angry with her, but she knew she felt somewhat protected in his arms.

Both had their eyes squeezed shut, afraid of what they would see if they opened them.

The sounds around them were confusing and maddening, the sound of water rushing and voices the couldn't make out, all jumbled together.

'Please stop!' Will mentally begged. 'Please!'

No sooner had she thought this, than sensation of falling stopped, the sounds died, and she felt her feet on solid ground.

She slowly opened her eyes, only to be greeted by pitch blackness.

Carefully, she pulled away from Harry, held out her palm, and the Heart rose from it, casting a gentle magenta glow.

"Where are we?" Harry asked, stepping closer into the light.

"I don't know." Will answered, shaking her head. "I'm afraid to cast too much light, in case there are Death Eaters around."

"I doubt it." Harry replied, looking around. "Remember Professor Lin's lesson on Zone Eaters? We just got pulled through time."

"Yes, I know, I'm just worried about whether we went forwards or backwards, and how far." Will hissed, slightly annoyed.

Before Will registered what he was doing, she heard Harry yell, "Expecto Patronum!", and a great silver stag filled the cave with light.

The room wasn't anything like the one they had left, it was considerably smaller, although still a fair sized cave, about less than half the size it had been before, obviously the way it had been before the Death Eaters had craved out connecting tunnels, although Will could see a small tunnel on one side of the room, just large enough for a slim ten year old to fit through, and considering the Zone Eater was no where to be found, she thought it must've gone through that tunnel, if it'd hadn't time jumped again.

"Well, we probably don't have to worry about finding Death Eaters here, judging by the fact that it looks like no one's ever been in this cave." Harry said, keeping the stag standing in the center of the cave.

"Harry! That was incredibly reckless!" Will snapped, almost losing focus on the magic it took to keep the Heart lit. "What if there had been Death Eaters, or worse, in here!"

"If there had been Death Eaters in here, they would've been on us the moment we made a single sound." Harry replied dismissively.

Will frowned, but didn't respond, silently admitting that Harry was right.

"I guess we've gone back in time." Harry stated. "Question is, how do we get back?"

"We catch the Zone Eater and charm it." Will said, sitting down with her arms and legs crossed, leaving the Heart hovering above her head.

"Professor Lin never happened to teach you how to bewitch one did she?" Harry asked.

Will sighed and shook her head.

Harry also let out a sign, and sank to the ground, sitting cross legged, finally letting his patronus go out.

"It was strange of her to teach us about Death Eaters in the first place." Will commented. "Elyon told us that they're from Metamoor."

"Metamoor?"

"It's the world on the other side of-" Will started to explain.

"I know." Harry said automatically.

Will's eyes widen. "You know what?"

"I know what Metamoor is." Harry answered dully.

Will unfolded her arms, and stated at Harry in shock. "How do you know?"

"Cedric told me."

"Cedric… You've meet Cedric?"

"Yeah, quite a while back."

Will was on her feet now, looking at Harry sternly and crossly. "What did he tell you?"

"He hinted about you, the guardians, and Elyon, saying he knew Elyon, and would've once given his life for her." Harry answered, refusing to meet Will's eyes.

Will was frowning, her brow furrowed. "And you didn't tell anyone? Not even Professor Dumbledore?"

"No."

"Why not!"

"Because of what else Cedric told me." Harry replied, hesitatingly.

"Oh, and what was that?"

"He told me that Sirius Black… my godfather… is still alive."

Will drew in a sharp breath, which caused Harry to look at her suspiciously.

"Will, you know something you're not telling me, don't you?"

"Well…" Will trailed off, pausing for a good long minute, while Harry stayed silent, waiting for an answer. "Harry I've met him, he is alive."

"And you're not lying?"

"Do you really think I'd lie about something like this?"

No, Harry didn't think she would lie to him about something she knew was very important to him, but still…

"Why didn't you tell me?" Harry asked desperately.

"Same reason I didn't tell you about the guardians, I couldn't tell you." Will replied coolly.

"Why all the secrets? How can you stand the secrets?"

"I have to stand them. None of us even told our parents about this for two whole years. It comes with the job."

"Then why did you take it?"

"I didn't take it, Harry, it was decided years before any of us were born that we would be guardians." Will snapped. "What could I do? Throw the Heart away and leave both Earth and Metamoor to suffer? I had to try and do something, and you know what? I liked it, I felt important, like I found myself, my real self. It's hard, yes, and hardly anyone on Earth knows or cares that we've protecting everything and everyone, but it's worth it."

When Harry was silent, Will continued, "I've seen mothers unable to feed their children, I've seen families torn apart, I've seen death, I've seen the very face of hopelessness and evil. I have the power to help stop it all, how can I not use it, not help?"

"And Elyon?" Harry finally spoke.

"She's the Queen, she was born with her powers, she was born to rule Metamoor. We only know her as well as we do, and know her as a friend because of Phobos. If Phobos had never tired to take over Metamoor, we probably wouldn't have known her, or she would just be a Queen to us." Will answered. "You know, I wasn't happy about it when it first happened, but a lot of good has come out of it. For one thing, we never would have even been invited to Hogwarts in the first place."

"Not necessarily, you might've had magical powers anyway." Harry said.

Will laughed bitterly. "Well, maybe for Hay Lin, but a highly doubt it for the rest of us. Besides, wouldn't we have attended an American school instead?"

"Well… I guess so."

"I learned a long time ago that it's better not to think about what might have been, it'll drive you insane." Will commented, sitting down on the floor with her arms folded again.

"There's more to why you didn't tell me any of this, isn't there?" Harry asked, not knowing why it seemed like he would feel better if he knew some part of Will was emotionally involved in this whole mess.

Will blinked up at him with those chocolate brown eyes. "Well, obviously."

"And that 'obvious' reason is?"

Will sighed, and drew her knees up to her chest. "Fear of rejection…"

Harry found this didn't make him feel better, but worse. He had reacted the way she had feared he would, he had proved he wouldn't accept her, proved she couldn't trust him with her secret.

Would he have acted differently if Will had told him?

He didn't know, and, thinking about Will's words that it would drive him insane to think about what could have been, he pushed the idea from his thoughts.

He could act differently now. He could accept her now.

Will was frowning down at the cave floor, lost in her own thoughts, and what Harry was about to do was probably the last thing she expected right now.

Harry sat down, right in front of Will, to which she reacted by jumping a little, startled, and blushing.

Harry gently put his hand behind Will's head, his fingers entwined with her soft red hair, he pulled her to him, her eyes wide, and he kissed her.

Will thought her heart would leap out of her chest, it was beating so hard, and she blinked several times to make sure her scenes weren't playing tricks on her, before she finally closed her eyes and relaxed.

It was nothing more than innocent contact, as neither would consider anything more than what their first kiss had been, but it was enough to make both teens feel warm, connected, and accepted.

When they pulled away, neither spoke for a long minute, before Harry, his hand still behind Will's head, whispered, "I accept you".

To Will, these words were as powerful to her as when Matt had used to tell her that he loved her. Harry probably didn't love her yet, and that was fine, she didn't think she loved him yet, but both accepted the other, and for Will, that was better than an "I love you".

Tears sprang to her tears, but she didn't cry, and she hugged Harry, who held her, hoping she would feel safe, and know that he would protect her.

Finally, Will said "We need to find a way back, you know".

Harry smiled, and let her go, the two rising to their feet at the exact same moment.

Unfortunately, their happiness didn't last long.

Will barely managed to pull Harry out of the way as the Zone Eater leapt from a portal that opened mere feet behind her boyfriend, her eyes wide with horror at the fact that they had such a small space with no way out to fight the Zone Eater in.

The Zone Eater fell over, landing hard on the save floor because of the thrust it had put in that last jump, and it lay still, but was awake and panting.

"What just- Was that-" Harry stammered over his words, shock still fresh in his mind, keeping him from being able to speak.

Will remained silent, knowing the Zone Eater would move again. 'How the hell am I supposed to stop it?' She thought frantically. 'I have to enchant it, but how? Dammit, how!'

The Zone Eater stood up, and shook dust off his green coat, before coming forward.

Will could only move out of the way, and Harry jumped to the side at the last moment, seeming to recover from shock in a desperate attempt to stay alive.

Will pulled out her wand, still wondering what she could possibly do to save herself and Harry, when the Zone Eater came at her, and she desperately called out a spell. "Protago!"

Her spell, however, didn't do what it was supposed to.

The jet of light that issued from her wand was blue, streaked with magenta, and it hit the wall behind the Zone Eater, sending dust and rocks flying.

Will and Harry ducked, Will cursing silently to herself.

Why had her wand just done that? Couldn't she control her magic?

'No, that's the problem!' She realized, climbing to her feet. 'Harry was right, and did have magic powers anyway. My guardian and witches powers are mixing!'

But why hadn't shown up before? When she used the heart, for all these years, why hadn't her other powers been active?

She didn't have time to think up an answer to this, because the Zone Eater was chasing Harry around the cave, and she turned her attention instead to trying to figure out how to charm a Zone Eater.

If it hadn't been so dangerous, it might've been funny, but luckily Harry wasn't too shocked to remember he had his wand. "Expelliarmus!"

The Zone Eater at least was stunned for the moment, and Will thought a mile a minute, for what seemed like years, before she got an idea.

"Harry! Move!" She shouted.

Harry did as told, and Will called the heart to her, gripping it between her hands, willing what she wanted to do into it, and then she opened her hands, the heart floating in mid air, glowing brightly and…

Nothing happened.

A roar from the Zone Eater, a cry from Harry, and they were on the ground, the Zone Eater trying to bite Harry anywhere it could reach, Harry beneath it, crying out and trying to push it off.

Will was nearly frozen. Why hadn't anything happened? What was she supposed to do now?

"Will! Do something!" Harry's voiced yelled.

"What?" She cried.

"Anything!"

So Will did something she couldn't believe herself. She ran forward, heart sparking as it sank into her palm, and she grabbed onto the Zone Eater to try and pull it off.

But she found she didn't need to.

As soon as she touched it, the Zone Eater moved on it's own, off of Harry, she lost her balance, and fell on top of him, for what must've been the hundredth time that year.

She instantly got up, blushing madly, and stammering an endless line of apologies. "Oh, god, Harry, sorry, sorry, I'm sorry, this must be the hundredth time I've fallen on you, sorry, sorry."

Harry sat up and sighed. "Don't worry about it. I just want to know what you did to it."

Will stopped stammering, and looked at the Zone Eater, which was sitting a couple feet away, like a dog might when you gave it the command to. "I- I don't know." She looked at her palm, which she realized was slightly burned, and she remembered the heart sparking.

"Will! Your hand!" Harry grabbed her hand gently, and pulled it to where he could look at it. "How did this happen?"

"The heart burned me…" Will said slowly. "Because I didn't think I needed it, I told it to go back into my body, and it was sparking."

"Why was it doing that?"

"It was doing what I told it too. I wanted to take control of the Zone Eater somehow, I poured that intent into it, and it carried it out. All I had to do was touch the Zone Eater." Will said. "So, the only way to take control of a Zone Eater is to use the Heart?"

Harry just shrugged, still holding Will's hand.

"I guess I'll have to ask Professor Lin when I get back." Will said.

"Why didn't she just tell you how you control one?" Harry asked.

"It's kind of her style to hint about things without actually telling you how to do it. I guess she thinks you gain more strength by doing it yourself." Will replied.

"Dumbledore's like that too most of the time." Harry said. "So, what do we do to get back?"

Will stood, and looked at the Zone Eater, then she opened her palm, and called out the Heart, looking deep into the crystal in the center.

What she saw was an image of the Zone Eater sitting just like it was in the small cave, and she poured a different intent into the Heart. She thought only of returning to the battle, of saving Elyon, of defeating Phobos, and she willed for the Zone Eater to open a portal.

Then she felt that sucking feeling she had when the Zone Eater had first ripped open a portal, and she turned to see the Zone Eater sitting calmly by a newly opened tear in time.

She called the Heart once again back to her body, and looked at Harry, who was now on his feet, staring curiously at her. "What?" She asked, feeling her cheeks grow warm.

"You're just… amazing, that's all." Harry said. "To be able to do all this stuff."

Will blushed, and bit her lip. "Well, you've fought Voldemort four times since you were eleven, and survived. That's amazing too you know."

Silence fell, and Will continued fidgeting while Harry just smiled at her.

"Come on, let's go help the others." Harry said, holding out his hand.

Will took it, still blushing, and they walked towards the portal, the Zone Eater going into it only when Will willed it too, and took a deep breath before they jumped back into the vortex that would take them to their friends and enemies. That would take them back to the battle.

**End Chapter Twenty-Nine**

I can't believe this story is one chapter away from thirty chapters. It's all thanks to you guys for sending reviews, you know, so thank you for all your support, patience, and just loving this story!

I'll try to update the story in about a month, but I have no idea what life will throw at me.

Please send reviews! I just love getting reviews! And, as usual, I ask that you please not send flames.


	30. The Choice

A/N: Yes, I'm very late with this chapter, and I'm sorry. I don't have much free time to write as I get closer to my last year of High School, and the college class I'm taking this year, thanks to my high grades.

I could list all the excuses, but I won't.

So, in short, I'm so very sorry for the wait, and I hope you enjoy the chapter.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own W.i.t.c.h. or Harry Potter, and I never will.

**Chapter Thirty**

**The Choice**

Cornelia jumped backwards from Bellatrix, having to dodge a curse from another Death Eater while she was at it, so she landed with her feet awkwardly positioned and she fell to the ground, helpless from the force that she hit the ground with.

Bellatrix would have killed her, she had no doubt of that, but luckily Professor McGonagall seemed to appear out of thin air, and knocked Bellatrix back into a boulder with a well aimed stunning spell, and advanced with surprising speed on the mad woman to battle her in Cornelia's place.

Cornelia wanted to thank her head of house, but in this chaos, she was certain she wouldn't be heard. She groaned, and slowly climbed to her feet, dusting dirt off her long skirt, although it didn't do much good considering how much dirt was all ready on her clothes.

'This was a bad idea…' Cornelia thought, sighing hopelessly at the feeling of guilt over the fact that she was the one who had insisted on coming here. 'We came to find Elyon, and we can't find or even go looking for her.'

The Death Eaters were doing well at keeping them busy, and away from two small tunnels, one of which Cornelia knew lead to Elyon, and the other, she guessed, lead to Phobos and Voldemort, but why the Death Eaters were defending the two villains, when both could easily keep anyone away themselves, Cornelia had no idea.

Was there a weakness that the dark lord and the dark prince had that must protected, or were both unable to fight due to a spell or injury?

Cornelia dragged herself from her thoughts to get back to the battle at hand, but the moment she moved, a Death Eater was on her, and she was too startled to react in time.

"Hey! Go cool off!"

A jet of water knocked the Death Eater away, sending him to the ground, spluttering.

Cornelia blinked, and looked behind her to see, as she expected, Irma standing behind her with a smirk on her face. "Thanks, Irma." Cornelia sighed, putting a hand to her chest, in which her heart was beating wildly.

"No problem." Irma said, walking up behind Cornelia and patting Cornelia on the back. "You owe me though."

"You haven't seen Will have you?" Cornelia asked, ignoring Irma's statement.

Irma's goofy grin faded into a serious frown. "No, Hermione said she saw Harry and Will pulled into a Zone Eaters vortex."

Before Cornelia could respond, someone grabbed her long hair from behind and yanked.

Cornelia screamed, and Irma, who had started forward, a hand reaching out to Cornelia, was rammed in the side by another Death Eater, and both tumbled away across the floor.

"Irma!" Cornelia managed to turn, despite the tight grip her captor had on her.

She knew him at once, even though he was wearing a pitch-black mask, and she desperately moved to step on his foot.

Lucis Malfoy side-stepped and brought her down to the ground, knee on her back, keeping her pinned down, and held his wand to her throat.

Cornelia snarled, struggled, refusing to let him win, even though she knew she couldn't.

He pushed harder into her back, making air rush out of her lungs with a painful groaning sound.

"Caleb!" Cornelia half screamed, half gasped. "Caleb!"

"Silence! Silence!" Lucis Malfoy hissed, moving his wand across her delicate neck as if to cut it. "It is pointless and you know it!"

Black stars began to dance into Cornelia's vision, her eyes drooped shut, and she couldn't breathe.

A whole room full of classmates, friends, and professors and not would help her, not one knew she was dying.

Where was Caleb? Where were Irma, Hay Lin, Will, and Taranee?

'Shit…' Cornelia thought, her mind slowing from lack of air. 'Is this it?'

"Cornelia!" Two voices rang through her dazed state, calling her name, though she could not realize who they were.

The weight on her back was thrown off, and on pure instinct, she swallowed a huge gasp of air, wincing as her lungs burned from too much oxygen.

"Hey, don't breathe in so fast, you'll faint!" A clear, strong, but worried, voice ordered.

Her mind beginning to clear, she felt strong arms holding her around her shoulders and waist, and she sensed another guardian, thought she was still too weak to tell which one.

She finally opened her eyes, her vision taking a moment to clear, and the first thing she saw was Taranee running off into the chaos, chasing a Death Eater.

Then she realized it was Caleb holding her, and fighting Lucis Malfoy at the same time.

Knowing there was no time to speak to Caleb, she forced herself to gain control of her body, freed herself from Caleb's gentle hold, and hurled a rock at Lucis Malfoy's head while moving toward high ground.

Malfoy smashed it with a silent spell, and then begin the spell that was the worst spell ever invented, his wand pointed at Caleb's chest. "Avadara-"

"NO!" Cornelia screamed, turning to rush back to Caleb, intending to place herself between him and Lucis Malfoy's spell.

There was a flash of white light just as Cornelia made it to Caleb, and Malfoy was tossed into the air like a doll, landing a good ten feet away, hitting his head on a rock.

Cornelia, now in Caleb's arms, blinked, and first looked up at Caleb, who looked just as confused as she must have, then toward the direction where the white light came from, and her mouth opened in a gasp.

Elyon stood in entrance to one of the tunnels the Death Eaters had been guarding, her blue dress torn and dirty, her braids messy and coming undone, but she was unharmed, and her ice blue eyes were flaming with determination and courage.

On either side of her were Draco Malfoy, whose robes were just as dirty as Elyon's dress, and Cedric, tall and towering in his fear inspiring snake form.

"Elyon!" Cornelia rushed forward, out of Caleb's arms, sweeping her friend into an embrace, not caring about Malfoy or Cedric.

"Cornelia, thank god you're safe!" Elyon cried, returning her friend's embrace, once again a normal teenage girl.

"No, thank god you're safe!" Cornelia exclaimed.

No one bothered the dear friends for a moment, but then Malfoy cleared his throat and said, awkwardly, "El… I mean, your highness?"

The Queen came back to Elyon, and she gently pushed Cornelia away, smiling at her while surveying her.

Caleb came up to them, put a hand on Cornelia's shoulder, and pulled her to him, an arm across her chest.

Cornelia blushed. "Caleb?"

"Are you all right? You could've died back there." He answered her.

"Yes, I'm fine. Are you?"

"Yes." Caleb sounded harsh and suspicious. "Queen Elyon, why are you with Cedric and Malfoy?"

Elyon looked over Caleb with understanding eyes. "I can see what your concern is, but Cedric and Malfoy saved me. I don't ask you to trust them, but please trust me."

Caleb was silent for a moment before he released Cornelia with a sigh of acceptance.

"What is the situation?" Elyon asked, a highly regal tone in her voice. "Don't tell me everything, that would take too much time, just the most important things."

Caleb opened his mouth to speak, but Cornelia cut him off. "I'm sorry Caleb, but, Elyon, there's something you should know. Harry and Will were sucked into a-"

There was another flash of light, not very bright, but enough to get their attention, and the light had come from a swirling cloud of dark colors that had opened from out of the very rock of the cave, and, much to Cornelia's joy, Harry and Will tumbled out, a Zone Eater coming out not far behind.

"Sorry again Caleb, please finish explaining things to Elyon, I'm going to see to Will." Cornelia said, all ready running to meet the two teens, who seemed to be shaking themselves out of a daze.

Will looked up, and smiled when she saw Cornelia running toward her. "Cornelia!"

Cornelia had barely stopped when she knelt next her friends, the friction of her sliding across the ground fully stopping her. "I was worried, we all were! We thought something awful had happened!"

"I'll explain later." Will replied, letting Cornelia help her to her feet, and then helping Harry to his.

"Where's Voldemort?" Harry asked, sounding breathless.

Cornelia shook her head. "I'm not sure, but he and Phobos haven't been seen since we got here. I think that means trouble."

Will sighed and nodded. "Well, back to the battle at hand."

Cornelia nodded in understanding, and ran back to Caleb, who was now fighting a tall, dark-haired Death Eater, Elyon, Malfoy and Cedric disappeared into the masses.

* * *

"Dammit, is that spell ready yet or not?" Phobos snapped at Peter Pettigrew, who was standing front of a large cauldron, which was glowing a deep red, and adding all kinds of disgusting ingredients, stirring with a sick look on his face.

"N- not yet, Prince Phobos." Pettigrew squeaked, his fear of the dark prince obvious. "It should be in mere minutes."

Phobos cursed, pacing over to a mirror that displayed the events taking place in the main cave. "Where did your master go anyway?"

"He- he said he had business to take care of in London." Came the high-pitched voice.

Phobos was silent now, watching the mirror with his full attention, finding the desperate attempts of the young students to find himself and Voldemort while still staying alive amusing.

Then a group of three people entered into the mirrors display, and his smirk vanished, to be replaced with a look of absolute rage.

His sister was free, fighting off Death Eaters easily, but what really enraged him were the other two people who must have freed her, that young brat who his sister was so hopelessly fond of, and his own supposedly loyal servant, Cedric.

"CEDRIC!" Phobos screamed at the top of his lungs, his anger causing some of his magic to make several books catch aflame, and the tunnel to shake, making Pettigrew fearfully huddle by the cauldron.

"Can't your master keep his own men under control! And yet my own servant has betrayed me! Betrayed me for my empty headed sister!" Phobos turned, and stormed off, leaving Pettigrew by the cauldron, shouting a last command of, "Finish that potion, you worthless scum!"

"Where are y- you going my lord?" Pettigrew stammered.

"To kill that traitor! Where else!" Phobos rounded a corner and was gone, the sound of his dark cloak flapping carrying through all the tunnels.

* * *

Elyon had decided she owed Draco something very nice when they returned to the castle, as he had now rescued her and saved her from two different Death Eaters, but she could guess he would want something like a very long kiss, as much as she did not like the thought.

As for Cedric, she had yet to make up her mind about him, yes, he had saved her, but she didn't know if it were part of a plan to gain her trust so he could kill her, or he was sincere in his pledge of loyalty.

"DRACO!" A loud harsh voice made Elyon turn around, Draco turning beside her.

Lucis Malfoy was leaning against a boulder, blood on his face and hands, panting from the obvious effort of keeping himself standing. "DRACO! How dare you betray our master! How dare you betray your family!"

The Death Eaters around them kept their distance, as if afraid to get in the way of Lucis and his selected targets.

"You- you are not my family." Draco said as barely more than a whisper.

Lucis strode over, limping the whole way, grabbed his son by his shirt collar, lifting him slightly off the ground, and pressing his wand to Draco's neck, but Draco did not struggle.

Elyon started forward, opening her mouth to cry Draco's name, but he signaled her to stay put, and looked over at her.

"This is my fight, not yours."

"Draco! How can you-"

"Well, boy!" Lucis yelled, jerking Draco to make him meet his eyes. "Do you have an answer for your father!"

"You are not my family! I've changed sides!" Draco shouted back. "I don't want Voldemort to kill you or mother, but I can't call you family anymore! This is the choice I've made!"

"Then I will kill you now to spare the dark lord the trouble!" But Lucis Malfoy didn't act on his declaration, but stood grasping his own child, making threats to kill him.

Elyon, unable to take it anymore, ran forward, and grabbed the elder Malfoy's hands, trying to rip them away from the younger. "Let him go! Let him go! Let him go!"

Lucis grabbed her robes with his other hand, still holding his wand, making Elyon wonder where his strength came from when he was so badly hurt. "Traitors deserve death!"

"No!" Elyon cried. "Cedric! Help!"

"You put a spell on him, didn't you! If I kill you, it will fade!" Lucis accused, desperate for a reason to explain his son's choice other than betrayal,

"Don't! You can't do this! He's your son!" Elyon yelped, Lucis jerking her by the neck. "What about his mother! Doesn't she love him!"

"She will not love a traitor!"

"Elyon, stay out of this!" Draco demanded, now gasping at his father's hand that had Elyon. "Father, leave her out of this!"

"I do not take orders from my son!" Lucis hissed.

"And you can't order me around, Draco!" Elyon snapped, struggling against both Malfoys. "Draco, I can't leave you alone in this! I- I love you!"

"You- you what!" Both Malfoys gasped in unison.

Suddenly there was a thud and Lucis crumpled to the ground, having been knocked over the head with a large green fist.

"Cedric!" Elyon cried, her voice dripping with relief.

"I'm sorry I couldn't get to you sooner, I had something to finish." Cedric replied.

"At least you came at all." Elyon said, sighing. "Thank you Cedric."

Cedric turned and slithered away without another word, and whether if it was because he didn't want to be thanked or he was embarrassed, Elyon couldn't tell.

Meanwhile, Draco was staring at Elyon, an expression of disbelief on his pale face.

"What?" Elyon asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You- you can't honestly mean what you just said?" Draco stammered. "You can't really- you know…"

"Oh, can't I?" Elyon said with a smirk. "We've got other more important things to worry about right now."

Draco frowned and grabbed one of Elyon's wrists. "But this is important!"

"Draco, please, Voldemort and Phobos remember?" Elyon said, unable to hide some of the fact that she was a bit uncomfortable over her confession.

Draco squeezed her wrist before gently releasing it, sighing, "I hate it when you do this".

"I- I'm sorry, but this has to-"

BAM!

The cave shook violently, and someone in the mass cried, "Earthquake!", as several people, both students and Death Eaters, raced for cover.

Draco pushed Elyon down, shielding her, making Elyon even more uncomfortable than she was all ready, but she made no attempt to get him off of her, knowing she would only start an argument.

The shaking continued as a loud, horribly familiar voice rang through the cave. "ELYON!"

"That's- that's him, isn't it?" Draco asked.

Elyon blinked back frightened tears as she nodded. "Yeah, my brother."

"WHERE ARE YOU AND YOUR GUARDIANS! CEDRIC! YOU WILL DIE FOR YOUR BETRAYAL!"

A dark shape appeared, and at first, it looked only like smoke, but from it rose Phobos, his eyes, the same eyes as Elyon's, burning in an uncontrollable hatred, his face contorted with rage.

Elyon pushed Draco off her, earning her a light slap on the shoulder, stood, and noticed among the crowd of witches and wizards lying on the ground, Will, Irma, Cornelia, Taranee, and Hay Lin also stood, but she couldn't see Cedric.

Phobos grinned, and Elyon shivered under his cold gaze.

After all this time, even after she had defeated him, and locked him away, proving she was more powerful, how could she still fear him so much?

A hand slipped into hers, and she punched Draco's shoulder, not looking away from Phobos.

"Stay out of this." Elyon hissed through gritted teeth.

"No chance." Draco replied, doing his best to ignore his now throbbing shoulder. "If you can't keep out of my fights, I won't keep out of yours."

Across the room, Harry had all ready been on his feet next to Will, and he stared in disbelief at Malfoy. "What is he doing? He can't seriously be-"

"Just trust Elyon, would you?" Will asked quietly. "For me?"

A bolt of green light shook the room.

Will and Irma jumped into the air, moving to circle around Phobos, while Cornelia and Taranee snuck around him to get him from the back.

The jet of water that Irma hurled was repelled, and redirected back at her, although she managed to stay in the air, even though she was coughing up water, and Hay Lin flew up to aid her, taking her back to the ground.

Cornelia opened a hole in the ground, jumped into it, and for a long moment, while Taranee hurled balls of fire and Will sent sparks of energy, but were naturally deflected by a sort of shield Phobos had around him, Cornelia did not act, until she flew up from under the ground a huge piece of solid rock levitating above her. With obvious effort, she hoisted the chunk of rock towards Phobos, and while he shattered it, some of the fragments that flew off in the shattering hit him, and he was momentarily defenseless.

Elyon wasted no time in taking advantage of this, hurling a large mass of light at her brother as she charged forward, her cry of rage mixing with Draco's, as he shot wordless spells from his wand, intent on protecting Elyon.

Phobos was down on his knees, Will almost couldn't believe it, as it had taken so long to defeat him before. Why was he falling to them so easily?

'Because he spent so long locked up, unable to use his power, while we were getting stronger.' She heard Taranee's voice in her head, and she turned to look at her friend, who gave her a quick smile from her position beside Cornelia conquering flames.

"Will, I thought you said he was stronger than this." Harry said, also flinging silent spells in Phobos' (who was now managing to fend them off) direction.

"I know, but it was a long time ago that we last fought him, even since then he's been rotting in a cell, unable to use his powers, while Elyon was taught to use her powers to their fullest, and we were taught by the Oracle." Will answered. "But, I do have a bad feeling about this."

"I wish you hadn't said that." Irma groaned, running past Will to get to a better vantage point. "Things always get worse when someone says that."

Immediately, Will found that Irma seemed to be right, when the cave shook more violently, and stones fell from the ceiling.

Will was surprised to see Neville, Dean, and Seamus force themselves to their feet to get to their girlfriends (although Neville wasn't Irma's boyfriend-yet), when the risk was so high, and how they shielding the girls. Was love this blind? When Harry did the same for her the next second, she realized that there might be some truth in that old cliché.

"YOU WEAKLING! YOU CAN'T EVEN DEFEAT SOME GIRLS AND THAT STUPID SISTER OF YOURS!" Voldemort appeared from thin air, literarily, red slits of eyes seeming to glow through the gloom that surrounded his thin figure, and those slits were looking right at Harry, and not Phobos.

Will tired to push Harry off so she could shield him, but he wouldn't let her, even though he knew she could over power him any day. "Harry, please, it's my turn to protect you!" She cried.

"No! We're protecting each other." He whispered, taking her hand, and giving her the quickest kiss in history, but it was enough to make Will give in to him.

Phobos stood, as angry as his so called 'partner'. "I'm out of practice, you know I am strong."

"Yes, yes, but it seems you can't do anything without me, or that snake of yours." Voldemort said casually, dismissing Phobos with a wave of his hand. "Of course, the Guardians do have help, don't they? From Harry Potter, and a bloody traitor."

"Harry, please-" Will began.

Harry stood, clutching his wand, and Will jumped up next to him, unwilling to let him fight alone. "Will… This is very dangerous."

"I know that. I also know it won't end here, the fight will go on." Will whispered. "I will stand with you, even in our own end."

**End Chapter Thirty**

A/N: It's a cliff hanger, I know! I'm sorry, but I couldn't figure out how to end it and this was the best thing I could come up with.

Don't worry, I'm all ready writing the next chapter, and I think it'll go faster since I'm really into it. I have also started writing the sequel story, which I don't think I'll post any of until I'm at least up to chapter five, that was I'll always have something to put up.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving! Oh, yeah, and I'm eighteen now. Whoo.

Please review!


	31. The One He Fears

A/N: First off, please allow me to beg for your forgiveness for not updating in so long. One thing I hate most about college is that it takes away a lot of the time I used to use writing with homework.

The story is almost finished, maybe another three or four chapters. I have begun work on the sequel, but I am not going to post any of it until I have written up to at least chapter ten, and will post the finished chapters once a month while I work on the next chapter(s). This is a strategy I'm hoping will speed up new chapter posts.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter or W.i.t.c.h.

**Chapter Thirty-One**

**The One He Fears**

Air and spit were forced out of Will's mouth as her back slammed into the rocky wall behind her and she fell from nearly ten feet high as she desperately tried to fill her lungs with air again, all thought purged from her mind. She wouldn't hit the ground, broken her neck, and never realized it unless Caleb hadn't caught her.

Because her brain was beginning to black out from lack of oxygen, she couldn't make out the voices around her, although she was aware of them.

"I could've gotten her." Harry said, kneeling next to Caleb as he gently set Will on the ground.

"Like hell you could have." Caleb replied, gesturing for them to switch positions so Harry could be closer to Will, at which Harry muttered his thanks. "We have to get Hay Lin over here, she must not be getting enough oxygen."

"But she's fighting-" Harry stated, but Caleb was gone before he could finish. He took Will's hand and turned to try and see Hay Lin amongst the throng that was still swarming around the cave and he couldn't tell classmate from Death Eater.

Despite the danger of having Phobos now in the battle, hardly anyone had left (although Ron had tried to drag Ginny out of the main cave, but in the end, he had given up) and the Professors were the only ones who were clearly visible (Harry could even make out Snape when he came into view, despite the professor's black robes), and for the last hour he had seen every one of his professors; except Dumbledore.

Harry had seen Dumbledore earlier, so where was he now? He couldn't have just left. Professor Dumbledore wouldn't just leave when his students needed him most.

"Ha- Harry…" Will coughed, having regained some air, but she sounded pained and wheezy.

"Don't talk." Harry ordered, turning his attention back to her.

"Need help?" Hay Lin had appeared beside Harry, and was already examining Will.

"Hay-" Will started.

"I thought I told you not to talk." Harry said firmly.

Will didn't reply but gave him a weak grin.

"She can't take in enough air, she must've been hit with a hell of a lot of force." Hay Lin reported. "There's nothing wrong with her lungs though."

"So can you help her?" Harry asked.

Hay Lin winked at him and held a hand over Will's open mouth as silver magic flowed from her finger tips and down Will's throat.

"She will be all right?" Harry asked, although it was between a statement and the question.

Hay Lin nodded. "In a moment, yeah."

"Can you beat him?"

"Of course we can. We've done it before and you guys are on our side now." Hay Lin answered, looking up at him with a grin.

Harry wanted to believe her, but the doubt still remained.

"We have to win." Will said, her awareness returning with the help of Hay Lin's magic, but her voice was still horse.

"You all right?" Harry asked her as she sat up and took her hand out of his.

"I will be." Will replied, getting to her feet. "Come on."

But they didn't have to return to the battle; it came to them, in the form of an angered Voldemort.

Will barely dodged a bolt of red light as Voldemort lashed out at the three of them.

"Leave them alone! It's me you want, isn't it!" Harry cried, running at Voldemort who easily knocked him aside.

"I'll deal with you later boy!" Voldemort spat as he heading for Will and Hay Lin.

Harry jumped to his feet, rushing as fast as they would carry him to get between Voldemort and the girls.

Voldemort turned his red eyes on Harry when Harry grabbed the back of his robes, attempting to drag him away (which Harry knew was very stupid).

Will frantically looked around for help, any help as Hay Lin rushed to help Harry, using her magic to increase her speed.

There were flashes of light every where, she couldn't tell anything, aside except for Phobos matching the strength of three guardians on the other side of the massive cave, Elyon and Draco dueling Lucis not far from them and Ginny's and Ron's flaming hair darting around the room.

Will charged forward, figuring they were on their own, and yanked Harry away from Voldemort just as Voldemort sent a silent spell over his shoulder. Will tumbled backward and Harry slammed to the ground next to her. She heard a loud smack and saw Hay Lin thrown against a wall by a bulky Death Eater, where she slumped limply to the floor.

"Damn it!" Harry shouted suddenly, his tone of voice surprising Will. "Where is Professor Dumbledore!"

Almost as soon as Harry spoke Dumbledore's name, Voldemort's attacks stopped and he looked at something behind Harry and Will.

"Hello Tom." A welcome voice said.

Will and Harry looked up and quickly stumbled to their feet. "Professor Dumbledore!"

Dumbledore strode to stand in the gap between Harry and Will. "Forgive me, I'm afraid I was otherwise occupied."

Harry felt the momentary urge to snap as Dumbledore, but did not as he realized Voldemort's rage must be influencing him, and the feeling faded into relief. "Sir…"

Dumbledore surveyed them, Harry's torn and dirty robes, the blood trickling from Will's lips and then strode toward Voldemort, no sign of fear present.

Harry grabbed Will's hand to pull her toward the battle with Phobos, but she did not budge.

"Professor Dumbledore…"

"Don't worry, he's more than a match for Voldemort." Harry assured her, still tugging lightly at her hand.

"But-"

"Dumbledore's the only one Voldemort's afraid of, the only one he's ever been afraid of."

"But-"

Harry looked at her seriously, pulling her arm so that she looked at him rather than the two dueling wizards. "He'll be fine. He's one of the most powerful wizards in the world, if not the most powerful."

"You make him sound like a god."

Harry lightly laughed despite the current circumstances. "He's anything but that, but he can beat Voldemort."

Will reluctantly let Harry lead her away at a fast jog, dodging spells and running people as they went.

Phobos had the upper hand, that much was clear, and he was bearing down on Irma, which made Will do something that was surprising and very stupid.

She took a flying leap, slammed into Phobos' back and both went tumbling through the dirt. "Go help Dumbledore! He's not the only one Voldemort's afraid of!" She yelled and she finally came to a halt, jumped up and charged at the dark prince again.

Harry jumped as Hermione and Ron seemed to come out of nowhere, both looking determined. Harry noticed that Hermione had a long gash along her cheek with dried blood caked around the wound, while Ron's sweater was filthy, and had some blood on it. "What're you two doing?"

"We're going with you, somebody's gotta keep the Death Eaters out of yours and Dumbledore's business." Ron answered.

"No way!" Harry said.

Hermione grabbed Harry's arm and dragged him back to the other side of the room, much as he had done to Will.

The instant they reached the area where Voldemort and Dumbledore were, two jets of red and orange light flew over their heads.

Ron and Hermione took their cue, turning away from Harry to face the two meddling Death Eaters and Harry shot a spell at Voldemort.

Voldemort hadn't noticed him, and neither had Dumbledore as both glanced him with surprised looks for the smallest moment.

Harry jumped beside Dumbledore, shooting and deflecting spells, glad his headmaster didn't tell him to leave.

The noise was intense, the screams, the yells, the spells, but Harry focused all his attention on Voldemort, shutting out everything else. This was the most important thing in the world right now.

"You are the most foolish boy I've ever known Harry!" Voldemort cried, shooting a spell that would've hit Harry if Dumbledore had not countered.

Harry didn't answer, knowing Voldemort was provoking him and he wouldn't let that happen.

They raged on, for minutes, hours, Harry wasn't sure, until the thing he'd been wanting to hear was heard; Phobos' voice screaming in frustrated rage.

"That idiot prince, he can't even beat three five school girls." Voldemort snarled, before he went completely silent, blocking the last of the spells intent on harming him before he disappeared.

Harry and Dumbledore glanced at each other, and Harry could see Dumbledore was just as, if not more, unsettled by this.

Then a horrible shriek rang out, or rather, five shrieks. And Harry knew whom those shrieks belonged to and it made his mouth go dry.

He recklessly tore across the cavern for the third time, Dumbledore right behind him, and he halted when he saw what had happened.

Voldemort, Phobos and three other Death Eaters were grasping the unconscious guardians, who slumped as limply as rag dolls, looking almost dead.

"What are you doing Tom?" Dumbledore demanded.

Voldemort conjured a large vile filled with the clearest red liquid. "Do know what this is Albus?"

Dumbledore did not answer.

"No, of course you don't, it's a potion from the other side of the veil, a potion called the "Thievery of Souls". All I have to do is take the source of their power, drink the potion, consume the item of their power, and their souls and powers are mine."

Dumbledore put a hand on Harry's arm to keep him from running forward. "And what does lord Phobos get out of this?"

"My sisters crown. Voldemort will give me a legion of Death Eaters for my help so I may go and retake my city." Phobos' voice was low and filled with cold excitement.

"It's not your city." Elyon had appeared behind Phobos and attempted to stun him with some of her blindingly bright magic, but, unfortunately, he was too quick and moved aside so that the Death Eater beside him, holding Taranee was hit and crumpled to the floor on top of Taranee.

Four Death Eaters were immediately holding Elyon down, though she managed to fend them off until six more came, while two dragged the body of the fallen Death Eater away from Taranee and another Death Eater took his place holding Taranee up by her arm.

Voldemort was laughing, head thrown back. "Ten of my Death Eaters to hold a single teenage girl? What spirit! Almost a pity she'll have to die."

Elyon glared up at him from where she was pinned to the ground, unwilling to make any attempts to escape for fear of hurting those around her.

"Tom…" Dumbledore said cautiously.

Voldemort ignored him. "But, my good prince, I don't suppose you would be willing to sample this potion first?"

Phobos loosened his grip on Hay Lin before she fell completely to the floor and stared at Voldemort in shock and hatred. "What?"

"You did bring me instructions for this potion, so naturally, I was hoping you would be the first to sip it, to prove there is nothing… wrong with it."

Phobos' fury seeped into his every word. "You accuse me of sabotage?"

Voldemort grinned coldly. "In a word, yes. This is of course a test of our partnership."

Phobos snatched the vial from Voldemort's thin hand in a swift fluid motion, and frowned at him. "Of course." He sneered unpleasantly.

Harry no longer struggled against Dumbledore, he simply watched, amazed that the battle could continue on around them with the most important thing happening here in this corner. He gave Dumbledore a pleading look, which his mentor did not return.

Phobos raised the vial in a mocking toast to Voldemort. "To your good health." He snarled, removed the cork with his teeth, spat it out and took the tiniest sip.

Several tense moments passed, all sound seeming to go mute around Harry.

Then, Phobos collapsed, teeth clenched and paler than ever. "Poison!"

Voldemort's face contorted and he grabbed the vial from Phobos. "I knew you could not be trusted!"

Phobos shook his head fervently, barely unable to move but giving little indication of pain. "It was not I! I swear it!"

The Death Eaters holding down Elyon behind the dark lord and dark prince gave strangled cries, and Harry jumped as one went flying across the room.

The company turned to see Cedric, holding a smirking Elyon in his scaly arms as gently as though she were made of glass, towering over them all. "No, it was I." He said.

Several things happened at once.

Harry and Dumbledore raised their wands, shielding themselves from unfriendly spells, Cedric put down Elyon and she raced to stand over Phobos, stopping him from attempting to crawl feebly away, Cedric meet all the Death Eaters who raced toward him and Voldemort was speeding away, even as Harry tried to pursue him.

"Stop! YOU STOP!" Harry's voice was amplified in the cavernous room, but Voldemort ran until he nearly ran headlong into Wormtail and Bellatrix LeStrange. Harry knew he would never reach them in time but still he pounded forward.

Voldemort looked over his shoulder to give Harry a wide cold smile before he Disapperated with his two most loyal servants.

The other Death Eaters seemed to sense their master leaving because most did the same, although there were a good few who could not without risking being hit by a spell before they would fully disappear, or they were held down, or, in Lucis Malfoy's case, they were passed out.

Harry halted and gasped for air, staring at the last spot Voldemort had stood.

It was over. For now.

**End Chapter Thirty-One**

A/N: I'm hoping I can wrap this story up within the nest few months. Thanks to everyone for your support, reviews and favoriting this story.

I should probably also mention I'm rewriting earlier chapters, just fixing up the writing to more detailed with my current style.


	32. Will's Surprise

A/N: And here we have the second to the last chapter of this story! I actually have finished the last chapter too.

I'm working on the sequel, but it probably won't be posted until I get up to the fifth chapter or so, to try and be sure I always have something to post.

Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter W.i.t.c.h.

**Chapter Thirty-two**

**Will's Surprise**

When Harry returned to the center of the chamber, Will and the other guardians were sitting up, trying to shake the daze out of their heads.

Will looked up at him with unfocused eyes. "What happened?"

"I'll tell you later." Harry promised, passing her after squeezing her shoulder to where Phobos lay unmoving on the dirt floor, with Elyon and Cedric (who was back in his humanoid form) standing over him. Harry now noticed the noise had died down, most of the Death Eaters were gone and the teachers were beginning to send students back to Hogwarts. Harry looked seriously at Elyon. "Is he dead?"

"No." Cedric answered before Elyon could. "The potion paralyzes, not kills."

"How long?" Harry asked, turning his gaze to Cedric.

Cedric smirked. "If I did it correctly, he'll never regain use of his legs, although he will regain some use of his arms."

Elyon remained silent, staring down at her unconscious brother.

"It's no use thinking about what might have been, your Majesty." Cedric told her gently.

Elyon turned to him and gave him a small smile. "Still reading my mind huh?"

"HARRY!"

Harry turned and was nearly knocked to the ground by Hermione, who ran at him and engulfed him in a fierce hug. "OPH! Hermione…"

"Come on Hermione, he's fine." Ron's voice came from over Hermione shoulder.

Hermione let go of Harry and stepped back so Harry could actually see her and Ron.

"Where are-" Harry started.

"Ginny, Colin and Luna went back already. Dean and Seamus should be leaving right about now." Hermione answered without hearing the rest of the question. "Neville's being treated by Professor McGonagall for minor injuries until he can get back the Hogwarts."

Harry sighed in relief. "And you two? You all right?"

Ron smiled despite a bleeding lip and Hermione pushed some hair out of her dirt-streaked face. "No worse than we've had before." Ron responded.

* * *

Harry sat next to Ron on a bed in the hospital wing, waiting for permission to leave.

Every so often, someone (some of the uninjured seventh years had volunteered to help Madam Pomfery) would come dab potion on one of their cuts or tell them to lie down and then bustled off to help someone

Hermione had left several minutes ago, not being hurt badly, which she credited to Ron's fantastic defensive spells.

Ron's ears could not have turned redder at that.

The Hospital Wing was emptying out fairly quickly, the forty students who needed more care than their own spells could provide had dwindled to thirteen in the last hour.

Will, Cornelia and Irma remained among those left, lying a few beds away from Harry and Ron, all sleeping soundly; Hay Lin and Taranee had already awoken and left.

There was a bed at the very end of the ward that was hidden from view by curtains and Harry suspected that Lucius Malfoy, who had sustained heavy injuries, was the one lying in that bed.

All the other captured Death Eaters had been locked in North Tower, awaiting the guards the ministry was sending to take them to Azkaban.

"Madam Pomfery," Harry called as she passed by, carrying several vials of potion. "Can Ron and I please go now?"

"Yes." She barked sharply without stopping.

Harry and Ron stood and walked towards the hospital wing doors, opened them and Draco Malfoy almost crashed into them.

All three stopped in their tracks and stared at each other for a long moment before Draco strode off without a word without a word to them to speak to Madame Pomfery, who pointed at the curtain surrounded bed and Draco quickly disappeared behind the curtains.

Harry exchanged a glance with the Ron before the turned and left.

Elyon was pacing outside, back in her school robes, wringing her hands behind her back. She stopped pacing but continued wringing her hands. "Hi Harry, hi Ron." She said in a wavering voice.

"Elyon? What're you doing here?" Ron asked, although to Harry it was completely obvious.

Elyon shifted her weight from foot to foot. ""Well, um, waiting for Draco…" She answered in a voice that sounded like she was admitting something.

Ron's face dawned an understanding look and put his hands in his pockets. "Well, seeya later."

"Yeah…" Elyon said quietly.

Harry and Ron walked on towards the stairs leading upwards and had barely reached them when they heard the hospital doors slam and Draco's voice shouting, although they couldn't make out the words, followed by Elyon's calm voice and footsteps retreating along the hall. Harry and Ron exchanged another look before continuing to the seventh floor and to the portrait of the Fat Lady.

"Oh, my dears, are you all right? I've heard from Violet, but she didn't have all the details." The Fat Lady asked, sounding like a fussy aunt.

"Yeah, we're fine." Harry replied, giving her a fake smile. "Twitter bit."

"Are you sure? I've heard the most horrible-"

"Twitter bit." Ron interrupted firmly.

The Fat Lady frowned but swung forward and Harry and Ron climbed into the common room.

Inside they found Hermione, engrossed in a book of defensive spells on the largest red couch and Luna with her head hanging upside down off the seat off an armchair.

"Luna!" Harry exclaimed in surprise. "How'd you get in here?"

"Hermione let me in. Don't worry, I covered my ears and hummed so I couldn't the password." Luna answered in her normal calm and dreamy tone.

Harry sat in the armchair next to her while Ron took a seat on the couch next to Hermione and hesitantly, his ears turning red again, put an arm around her shoulders.

Hermione looked up at Ron, closed her book and set it aside so she could lean her head on his shoulder.

Harry glanced at Luna and saw her smiling at the couple and Harry allowed himself a small lop sided smile.

"What do you think'll happen to Malfoy senior?" Ron asked.

"Azkaban, after he's healed, I imagine." Harry answered.

"What about Draco?" Hermione asked, sounding concerned.

"Azkaban too probably." Ron said with a small scowl.

"I hope not, for Elyon's sake." Hermione replied.

Luna flipped up to sit upright in her chair. "He did help us in the end."

"Yeah, but he can't be trusted, we all know that."

"I dunno Ron, Elyon might've had quite an effect on him." Hermione replied, taking her head off his shoulder.

"I highly doubt-" Ron cut off his response when the portrait hole opened and Elyon came in, looking depressed.

"Elyon, is something wrong?" Hermione asked, sitting up straight.

"Draco's father disowned him." Elyon said bitterly, standing by Luna's chair.

"I thought that might happen." Luna admitted.

"He sent me away, said I wanted to be alone." Elyon sighed.

"What's going to happen to Cedric?" Harry asked, changing the subject.

Elyon chewed her bottom lip. "Professor Dumbledore is speaking to him. I'm not entirely sure why Professor Dumbledore wanted to talk to him, but I get my turn next."

"And…?" Harry prompted.

"I'm going to welcome him back to my court as my advisor."

"WHAT?!" Ron exclaimed, jumping to his feet, making Hermione frown at him. "I don't know him, but he kidnapped you and tried to kill us."

"Ron," Elyon said, carefully controlled anger in her voice. "What I decide to do is my choice. I'm doing this as a queen, not as a girl who feels sorry for him. He was had this all planned from the beginning, it was dangerous for him to do it, he could've been discovered."

"It could've been part of their plan!" Ron yelled.

"Phobos would never agree to a plan that would leave him completely helpless."

"But what'll the lizard do to your kingdom!"

"You've never even been to my kingdom."

"Ron." Hermione put in firmly. "Elyon's choice is none of our business."

"What if he goes back to that prissy brother of yours?" Ron said, not easily defeated.

"He won't, I'll make sure of that." Elyon replied.

"Somehow I think you can keep him in line." Harry stated.

Hermione, Luna and Elyon burst into laughter while Ron sat back down, his ears red for probably the hundredth time that day.

* * *

"School exams seem so difficult." Harry commented.

"Well, a lot's happened. I just hope Professor McGonagall doesn't take off too many points for my pillow having whiskers." Will replied, making Harry smile.

Another week before summer break and Will and Harry had determined to spend every second of their free time together, before their two months of separation.

Today, having finished lunch early, they were strolling hand in hand by the lake, which was reflecting the bright June sun on it's surface.

"They were harder last year, for me anyway, when I thought Sirius was dead." Harry said absent mindedly. "Everything was a blur for weeks after that, it's a miracle I passed my exams."

Will was silent, not knowing how to answer.

The silence hung in the air for many long moments before Will said, "He misses you."

"I miss him too."

At that, Will's solemn face changed and her eyes lit up. "Come on." She commanded, dragging him toward the forest.

"What're you doing?" Harry exclaimed, allowing her to pull him past Hagrid's cabin. "I know that look Will."

"You'll see."

Harry sighed and resigned himself to whatever fate she had in mind for him.

They reached a dense clump of trees where the sunlight barely shined through the branches of the tall pine trees.

"Will, what're-" Harry started, but stopped when she held out her hand, palm up.

The heart floated out of her palm. It flashed and Harry was astonished when a swirling pink vortex appeared mere feet in front of him.

"What is that?" Harry asked.

Will reached out for his hand, smiling gently. "A portal to the other side of the veil."

Harry hesitated before taking her hand and letting her lead him through the portal.

* * *

"Hello Vathek." Will greeted the guardsman cheerfully.

"Lady Will? I didn't know you were coming." Vathek answered, clearly surprised.

"Spur of the moment decision." Will replied.

Will had taken herself and Harry to the hallway outside the throne room, figuring that would be better than their actual destination.

"Who is that?" Vathek questioned, indicating Harry who was completely bewildered.

"This is Harry Potter." Will said. "Don't worry, you can trust him."

"If you deem him trustworthy, then he must be so."

"Will, where the-" Harry started, letting go of her hand.

"Excuse us Vathek, we have business to attend to." Will interrupted, bowing her head respectfully and walking off in the opposite direction.

Harry, still utterly confused, followed her. "Will, where are we exactly?"

"The palace in Meridian, capitol city of Meetamoor."

"And who was that?"

"Vathek, second in command of the guards."

"Who's first in command?"

"Caleb." Will answered. "Why haven't you asked me where we're going?"

"Because I know you won't tell me."

Will turned to look at him, one corner of her mouth turned upward.

They walked on in silence, going down two flights of stairs and out of a pair of giant doors made of wood Harry was sure he'd never seen before.

Harry paused to admire the beautiful courtyard, mouth open slightly.

The air was thick with the scent of flowers, both of colorful flowers he was sure didn't grow on earth, and what were unmistakably roses.

"The roses are the same." Harry remarked, continuing after Will.

Will smiled. "Yeah, I don't know why, but they've always made Elyon happy. They're a piece of home for her."

Harry then noticed that they were walking to a small house by one of the castle walls. "Okay Will, where ARE we going?"

"It's a surprise."

Harry sighed in frustration.

They finally came to the door of the house and Will knocked.

"Yes?" A voice very muffled through the thick door sounded.

"It's Will."

"Come in."

Will opened the door and they both stepped inside.

Harry instantly recognized the man who had just stood to greet Will. "Sirius!" He exclaimed without thinking, stepping in front of Will.

Sirius's mouth dropped in surprise, his eyes the softest Will had ever seen them. "Harry?"

In an instant, Sirius strode across the room and embraced Harry like a son, Harry returning the hug.

Sirius pulled back, keeping his godsons shoulders in his grasp, examining him. "Harry, we've got so much to talk about."

Harry, grinning so much his cheeks ached, nodded. "I know."

Sirius then turned to Will, her own smile wide and her eyes watering slightly. "Will, thank you."

Harry left his godfathers grasp from a moment to plant a gentle kiss on her lips before pulling away. "Thank you."

Will put her hand on Harry's cheek for a moment. "How could I not bring you to see him?"

Harry kissed her again before returning to his godfather, the both of them sitting in cushioned wood chairs.

Sirius looked at Will with a amused smile on his face. "Harry, you've got quite a catch with Will. I'd say she's a keeper."

Will blushed bright pink.

Godfather and godson began a conversation, about Hogwarts, about the members of the Order, about Harry's life, about Sirius's life, both wanting to know everything.

Will backed out of the still open door, closing it behind her, deciding it would be better if she left them be for the moment. She was prepared to wait for as long as Harry needed.

**End Chapter 32**

A/N: I cannot believe how long this took to write in one of my notebooks (I write all the chapters in a notebook before typing them up). I ran out of paper!

Please review! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and will enjoy the final chapter, which is coming soon since I already have it written!


	33. Not Farewell

A/N: This is the final chapter of Harry Potter and the Guardians of the Veil! Thirty-three chapters and nearly five years (Jesus, I was fourteen when I started writing this). Anyway, I'm leaving to go out of town tomorrow and figured I should upload before I go.

I told myself I'd finish it, if anything to prove that I could, and I did. I feel this is a major accomplishment for me. My writing has really changed since I started this story and I'm still fixing up old chapters to repost.

One thing to keep in mind, Neville and Irma are still not boyfriend/girlfriend at this point. Also, Draco doesn't want _it_. I don't really picture him as the kind of guy who'd do it before marriage, he just wants some action.

And thank you, of course, to all my readers and especially my reviewers!

**Chapter Thirty-Three**

**Not Farewell**

Will closed and locked her trunk with a sigh, gazing around the sixth year Gryffindor girls' dormitory, burning every little detail into her mind.

How strange would it be to go home to her mother's tiny apartment, to her tiny room, without Lavender and Pavarti's quiet giggling in the room? Without Hermione's quill scratching at two in the morning? Without Elyon and Cornelia only feet away from her to keep her company?

"I'll miss it too." Cornelia said, brushing the red cloth curtains by the only window with her hand.

"It's going to be a long summer." Will sighed, picking up her trunk. "I guess we better go now."

Cornelia picked up her own trunk, paused, and looked curiously at Will.

"What?"

"I just realized we aren't going to be able to write to anyone."

Will nodded. "Yeah, it'll be hard, not knowing what's going on, what everyone's doing. At least you and Elyon will be able to keep in contact with the… really important people."

Cornelia shook her head. "Elyon told me she's not going to visit Malfoy over the summer, she says it probably wouldn't be good for him after his sentencing."

Will chewed her bottom lip. "I hope he doesn't get Azkaban…"

Silence fell and the two friends stepped out of the room, looking back a final time before closing the door and knowing they wouldn't see it again for another two months.

* * *

"Elyon."

Elyon didn't protest to the gentle but firm hand that took her shoulder and turned her around. She had come to the dungeons to find him.

"Store room, it's private." Draco Malfoy whispered.

Elyon followed him silently, mounting her courage to do what she had decided to do a week ago.

Malfoy closed the door, turned to her, ice blue eyes sincere. "I've gotten my punishment. It's all been very low key, thanks to Dumbledore, none of the other Slytherin's know about it, my betrayal, I mean."

Elyon stood silently, waiting.

"I'm going to an apartment in London, almost next door to the Ministry. I'll be under house arrest for the summer, but I'll be allowed to come back here for school in September. No contact with anyone all summer. I think Dumbledore's the reason I got off so lightly…"

Elyon didn't answer.

"It's going to be hard for you, if you stay with me…"

"We'll get through it." Elyon stated boldly.

"I'm a criminal."

"No you're not."

"I'm always going to be hated."

"Not in my world."

"One person-"

"I meant that literally, Draco." Elyon interrupted firmly.

"You mean… The other side?" The surprise in his voice was evident.

"No one will know, no one will care." Elyon answered.

Malfoy was silent, thinking.

Elyon waited patiently, her hands at her sides.

"No."

"No?" Elyon blinked in shock.

"No, I have to make amends here." Malfoy replied.

"But-"

Malfoy hugged her fiercely. "But after I serve my time, after next year, I'll go with you then, when I can stay."

Elyon sighed. "I had to give it a shot."

"I wouldn't done it too, if you and your damned goody two shoe personality hadn't rubbed off on me."

"Don't be _too_ good Draco, I like that part of you a little bit." Elyon said with a smile.

He gave her a smile in return and then kissed her, a hand on her cheek.

She accepted, returned it, but backed away when he asked for more passion.

"Aw, come on." He whispered teasingly, his arms still around her.

"I have to put up some limits Draco. That was only our first kiss."

Draco was silent, but kissed her again, not deepening it any more than she liked. "One more thing, I'm going to act like I don't have much to do with you in public, at least, make it look like we're not together."

"I understand." Elyon said with a small smile, and meant it.

"Sit with me on the train though?"

"Absolutely."

They exited the storeroom and Elyon immediately turned bright red because Cedric was standing outside, arms folded, scanning the passing Slytherins intently. His eyes moved to Elyon and she saw a frown pass over his face as he strode toward them.

"My lady-" Cedric began.

"Elyon." She said automatically.

"My lady, Mr. Malfoy." Cedric repeated, ignoring Elyon.

Elyon sighed and Malfoy gave a curt nod, obviously uncomfortable.

"That was a… rather disgraceful way to conduct yourselves."

"Like anyone cares." Malfoy grumbled loud enough for Cedric to hear.

Cedric narrowed his eyes at Malfoy. "I see I shall have to watch you two closely. I will accompany you on the train."

"Cedric, that's not-" Elyon started hurriedly, raising a hand.

"As you may recall, you gave me authority as your advisor and I am advising you that I don't leave you unattended." Cedric interrupted with a frown.

"Even if I say no you're going to, aren't you?" Elyon replied in defeat, glancing at Malfoy, who was wearing a frown to match Cedric's.

Cedric said nothing.

"Very well." Elyon relented.

Cedric's face momentarily showed a look of smug triumph before he took on his usual cold, casual look and turned to lead them away.

Malfoy grabbed her hand, after making sure it was well hidden, as if determined to irk Cedric a least a little.

Elyon smiled, wondering how they could be so similar and why she fell for their type.

* * *

Will and Cornelia had just arrived at Hogsmeade station together and within moments of Elyon.

Both girls were about to go join their boyfriends, when they noticed Irma, Hay Lin and Taranee crowded close to each other, only there was something strange about it.

Taranee's face was in her hands, Irma and Hay Lin both had an arm around her, while Neville and Seamus stood to the side, looking awkward.

Will, Cornelia and Elyon handed their luggage to the porters and then rushed to their friend (Elyon leaving a confused looking Cedric and Malfoy).

"What's wrong?" Will questioned upon halting directly in front of her three fellow guardians.

"Dean." Hay Lin answered sadly.

"Dean what?" Cornelia snapped, the protectiveness she had for Taranee obvious.

"He broke up with her, obviously." Irma muttered.

"What? But they were crazy about each other." Elyon put in, looking confused.

"'Were' being the obvious word." Irma said.

Taranee didn't say anything, didn't even make a single noise, but wet tears leaked through her fingers.

Irma moved so that Will could take her place. "Why'd he do it?" She asked softly.

"He said he couldn't handle it, the-" Taranee's voice choked and muffled voice stopped abruptly as she fought back a sob.

"Guardians." Will finished with a sigh.

Taranee moved to hug Will, while Will rubbed her back.

"It'll be fine, you'll find someone loads better." Cornelia said, trying to be helpful.

"Thanks, I know it's for the best." Taranee replied in a whisper, straightening up and taking her glasses back from Hay Lin, her eyes red but her face set.

"Do you want us to sit with you?" Will asked, knowing that all of the girls would gladly give up their plans to sit with their new friends to comfort their long time friend.

Taranee, however, shook her head. "I think I'd like to be alone."

"You sure?" Irma asked, laying a hand on Taranee's shoulder.

"Yeah."

Irma slowly nodded, gave Taranee's shoulder a squeeze and then joined Neville to board the train with him.

Cornelia hesitated. "Call us if you need us." She slowly walked to Caleb and spoke to him for a moment before they moved off down the platform.

Hay Lin was already gone, speaking to Seamus as they went onto the train through the same door Irma and Neville had taken.

Elyon was gone too, and Will couldn't see her anywhere within sight. She guessed she had gotten on the train already.

"You sure you're okay?" Will asked.

"Just go Will, you won't see him again for a long time."

Will gave her best friend another hug and squeezed her hand before she left to find Harry.

He was standing at the last train car, as if he'd been waiting for her, breaking into a smile when he saw her.

Will's heart sank even lower at that smile. She'd seen Dean smile at Taranee like that, seen him hold her hand, whisper to her. Now she didn't have that. With that thought, Will walked faster and settled herself in his arms.

"Will?" Harry asked, putting his arms around her despite his surprise at her show of affection.

"Dean left Taranee."

Harry was still confused. "Left…?"

"He said he couldn't handle it all."

All was clear to Harry now and he sighed, remembering he had put Will through what Taranee must be going through mere months before.

"All aboard!" A distant voice from the front of the train called.

Will and Harry climbed onto the train, found an empty compartment and sat next to each other, dreading pulling into King's Cross.

* * *

The platform was crowded with parents, and Mrs. Weasley found her children quickly, and began fussing over Ginny and pestering Ron while Hermione stood at Ron's side with an amused grin on her face.

The guardians said farewell to their friends sadly, Hay Lin, Taranee and Irma bidding goodbye to a large group of Ravenclaws, including Luna Lovegood, while Will and Harry said goodbye to the Quidditch team. Elyon was speaking to Malfoy, both irritated by Cedric's presence. Cornelia and Caleb stayed connected at the hip as always.

Finally, Will and Harry gathered their things and pushed their trolleys back into the muggle world. They scanned the crowd for a moment before Will saw three very unpleasant looking people heading their way.

"That them? You aunt and uncle?" Will asked, pointing at them.

"Yeah." Harry said bitterly.

Will turned to him, her brown eyes twinkling, and kissed him. She sensed his amusement at what she was doing and thought to herself how much bolder she had become this year.

"What the _hell _are you doing?"

Will and Harry broke apart and Harry took Will's hand as they turned to find Uncle Vernon's furious purple face leering at them. Behind him was Aunt Petunia's white, shocked face and Dudley, who's mouth was hanging open.

Will restrained a smile, because she'd gotten exactly the reaction she'd wanted.

"This is my girlfriend, Will Vandom." Harry said, matter-of-factly.

"Harry's told me so much about you." Will said pleasantly.

"She's from America, transferred to… my school because she's gifted." Harry half lied, and did it well.

The horror on their faces was incredibly pleasing.

"If you don't mind, I'd like a moment alone." Harry said, leading Will off to some piled high luggage where they were mostly out of sight.

"So…"

"So I'll see you in two months." Harry said.

Will hugged him tightly, happy that he held her just as tight. Will closed her eyes and they stood like that for a moment, very much lost in it.

"It'll be all right, two months and we'll all be back together again at Hogwarts." Harry said gently.

"I wish there was some way I could stay in contact. We won't have any idea what's going on." Will replied, her voice muffled from her face being pressed against Harry's shoulder. "If there was, you could tell me if the Dursley's give you any trouble, and I'd be over in a heart beat."

Harry smiled, squeezed her in the embrace one more time and then they parted ways, both looking over their shoulders at one another for one last moment. Harry found the Dursley's right where he had left them, Uncle Vernon's face still purple.

"Let's go." Uncle Vernon snapped, starting off with Aunt Petunia at his side.

Harry and Dudley followed, and Dudley surprised Harry by speaking to him.

"Will huh?"

"Yeah." Harry said slowly, giving his cousin and confused glance.

"She… wasn't bad looking."

"Yeah." Harry repeated, refusing to let on how confused he was and didn't ask Dudley why he had said that.

Meanwhile, Will had found Irma, Taranee, Cornelia, Hay Lin and Elyon grouped around platform ten, Caleb and Cedric hovering close by.

"Well, it's gonna be weird at home now huh?" Irma stated more than asked, hands in her jeans pockets.

"For you guys maybe. It'll be pretty normal for me." Elyon answered with a laugh.

"That reminds me, this whole school thing has brought a generic age old question that I thought I knew that answer to, but now I don't think I'll ever really have the answer." Will said.

"What?" Hay Lin asked curiously.

Will gave a huge grin. "What does normal mean anyway?"

**The End**

A/N: I know, one of the lamest ending lines ever. It seemed all right to me in this context.

Work on the sequel is underway, just don't ask me when it'll be up… I'm pretty busy so I can't really commit to a lot of writing right now.

I sincerely hope you enjoyed Harry Potter and the Guardians of the Veil.


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